Medical

Bill To Take Marijuana From Cancer Patients Gets Trashed

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Oregon voters approved medical marijuana in 1998, but conservative legislators are trying to restrict which patients can qualify.

Legislators got an earful Wednesday from medical marijuana advocates who opposed a proposal to greatly restrict who can legally use cannabis to combat illnesses.

It’s the second time the issue has come up recently, with some lawmakers claiming too many people are scamming the law that allows the use of marijuana to treat some diseases and symptoms, reports Harry Esteve at The Oregonian.

“I personally think the program is out of control,” sniffed the self-righteous windbag Sen. Jeff Kruse (R-Roseburg), sponsor of one of the bills targeting the growth of medicinal cannabis use. “I know people who just find it a legal way to smoke pot,” he claimed.

WA Paper: Strip Medical Marijuana Bill Of Onerous Amendments

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Spokane Spokesman-Review

A major newspaper in Washington state has called for legislators, currently trying to revamp and clarify the state’s medical marijuana law, to drop onerous amendments which threaten to torpedo what started out as a good piece of legislation.

“The present bill does a thorough job of establishing a system for the legal production and distribution of marijuana, but heavy-handed amendments were added in the Senate before that body passed it,” editorialized the Spokane Spokesman-Review.

“The amended bill would not allow medical marijuana to become a commercial enterprise, unlike other drugs,” the Spokesman-Review wrote. “Nor could it be advertised as other drugs are. In addition, individual communities could choose to outlaw dispensaries.

No Charges Yet In MT Dispensary Raids; $4 Million ‘Seized’

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Medical, News

Photo: THC Finder

Dumb-ass DEA agents felt they needed to wear masks and respirators while raiding and killing medical marijuana gardens in Montana on Monday, because otherwise they might get some of that evil cannabis on them.

There are still no charges related to this week’s medical marijuana dispensary raids across Montana, but an examination of civil seizure warrants reveals a possible motive behind the raids: The warrants authorized federal agents to “seize” more than $4.2 million from dispensary bank accounts.

Following what authorities claimed was an 18-month investigation, 26 search warrants targeting seven dispensaries were executed on Monday, reports Angela Brandt at the Helena Independent Record. Federal agents claimed they were looking for evidence of “large-scale trafficking” as well as tax evasion.

Colorado: Proposed Ban On Cannabis Edibles Dropped

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: THC Finder

Colorado patients will still be able to use their cannabis in the form of edibles after one busybody lawmaker backed down on her effort to ban the treats

A Colorado state lawmaker on Tuesday withdrew her proposal to ban cannabis-infused products for medical marijuana users in favor of optional childproof packaging standards.

The House Judiciary Committee approved the bill 7-3 after it was changed to allow — but not require — state regulators to call for tamper-proof packaging, reports The Denver Post. No edible cannabis products were banned.

Earlier this month, the prospect of a ban on medicinal cannabis edibles galvanized patients and advocates. Dozens of activists testified against the ban.

New Hampshire House Passes Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 16, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: ReLegalize Indiana

The New Hampshire House of Representatives, which has a nearly 3:1 Republican supermajority, overwhelmingly passed a bill Wednesday that would allow residents to use marijuana for medical purposes.

H.B. 442, which would create a narrow exception in New Hampshire law for people with certain qualifying conditions to use marijuana to treat their ailments with doctors’ recommendations, will now move on to the Senate.

The bill passed 221-96, or by 69.7 percent, doing better than similar medical marijuana bills have done in previous Democrat-controlled sessions, proving that this an issue that both parties can support. The bill was introduced by Rep. Evalyn Merrick (D-Coos), a cancer survivor, and is sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Jim Forsythe (R-Strafford).

CO: Proposed Doctor Rules Would Hurt Marijuana Patients

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical

Colorado Medical Marijuana Doctors

Legislators in Colorado, worried by conservative hype that “marijuana mills” are helping patients get high rather than healthy, are trying to figure out how to reduce access to cannabis. Most of a stack of competing proposals would hurt patients by making it harder to get an authorization.

One proposed regulation would require a “bona fide” relationship between doctor and patient, whatever that’s supposed to mean.

Another would ban doctors with “conditions” on their medical licenses from authorizing medical marijuana patients, reports Neil Katz at CBS News.

As usual, the biggest casualties of the confusion are patients. About 1,300 people who applied for medical marijuana cards were rejected late last year by health officials because their recommendations came with doctors with license conditions.

Montana Senate Turns Away Medical Marijuana Repeal

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 14, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: KTVQ

A Montana Senate committee has deadlocked on a tie vote, failing to endorse a bill that would have repealed the state’s medical marijuana law.

The Senate Judiciary Committee locked up 6-6 on a motion to pass House Bill 161, by House Speaker Mike Milburn (R-Cascade), to repeal the law passed by 62 percent of voters in 2004, reports The Missoulian. The repeal bill, which removes safe access to cannabis for thousands of seriously ill patients in Montana, passed the House earlier this session.

Worth Repeating: Body’s Own Cannabinoids Are The Bliss Within

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 14, 2011 Medical

Photo: Henry Diltz

Welcome to Room 420, where your instructor is Mr. Ron Marczyk and your subjects are wellness, disease prevention, self actualization, and chillin’.

Worth Repeating

By Ron Marczyk, R.N.

Health Education Teacher (Retired)

Did you see the medicinal cannabis science report in The New York Times on February 16?

In summary, the report says the great sense of euphoria and calm that many people report experiencing after prolonged exercise (“the runner’s high”) is not so much governed by the endorphins as “now an emerging field of neuroscience indicates that an altogether different neurochemical system within the body and brain, the endocannabinoid system, may be responsible for that feeling” of “pure happiness, elation, a feeling of unity with one’s self and/or nature, endless peacefulness,” and “inner harmony.”

I have always been fascinated by how exercise and positive mood states go together. Having a master’s degree in exercise physiology and cardiac rehabilitation, being a runner for 45 years, and as a rock climber with a background in Zen, I feel qualified to discuss how the endocannabinoid system can be activated by exercise and/or THC ingestion.

CT Lawmakers Look At Medical Marijuana And Decrim

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 14, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

With a recent Quinnipiac University poll showing overwhelming 79 percent support for medical marijuana, the Legislature and governor appear poised to reform cannabis laws in Connecticut.

A hearing began on Monday to discuss legalizing marijuana for people with serious medical problems and decriminalizing small amounts of it for recreational users, reports Jeff Stoecker at NBC Connecticut.

“Our state should not encourage illegal drug possession and use; however, possession of small amounts of illicit substances and related paraphernalia for personal use should not leave a person with a life-long criminal record,” said Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, a Democrat who represents New Haven and Hamden, of the decrim bill.

Poll: 79% Of Connecticut Voters Support Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 11, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Menopausal Stoners

Medical marijuana has the support of a whopping 79 percent of Connecticut voters, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday. The poll, which also showed strong support for cannabis decriminalization, comes as state legislators consider medical marijuana and decrim bills.

Support for medical marijuana was above 70 percent in every demographic, with even 72 percent of Republicans favoring it, reports Phillip S. Smith at AlterNet.

“There is a near consensus on the medical marijuana law with about eight in 10 voters supporting it,” said Dr. Douglas Schwartz, Quinnipiac poll director. “it’s rare to see such a level of support for any issue.”

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