Medical

Browsing: Medical

Medical Marijuana Advocates Launch Election-Based Website

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 25, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

New tool enables patients, advocates to make informed choices by reviewing voting record of elected officials

The medical marijuana advocacy group Americans for Safe Access (ASA) on Thursday launched a new website — VoteMedicalMarijuana.org — that provides patients and their supporters with the tools they need to make informed decisions about the candidates in their districts. The new website will give visitors a pass/fail “grade” for how their Member of Congress has voted on medical marijuana since 1997.

The Good Doctor: Serving Time In California For Good Medicine

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 24, 2012 Culture, Medical

Sharon Letts

Dr. Marion Fry believes that cannabis is good medicine, and that God will save her.

Exclusive Prison Interview:
Dr. Mollie Fry

Story and Photos

by Sharon Letts

It’s been one year and five months since Dr. Marion “Mollie” Fry and her husband, Civil Attorney, Dale Schafer, surrendered to Federal prison for manufacturing and distributing Medical Cannabis in California.

More than six years of litigation and three years of appeals rendered “no defense,” insuring mandatory five year Federal prison terms, respectively.

In 2001 the Fry/Schafer family home located in the hills just north of Sacramento was raided by Federal authority under then President George W. Bush, Jr. during the failed “War on Drugs.”

Thirty-four plants were confiscated – 20 were infested with spider mites, sitting near a compost pile.

44 Plants in a Pile

According to Schafer, the couple had never grown more than 44 plants in a given year – well below the 99 plant limit set forth by the State of California for medical use – and never sold a leaf.

MT Supreme Court Denies Medical Marijuana Rehearing

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 23, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

KULR8.com

The Montana Supreme Court on Tuesday denied a motion filed by the Montana Cannabis Industry Association in its constitutional challenge of the state’s medical marijuana law. The motion asked the Supreme Court to reconsider a recent decision overturning significant parts of a lower court’s injunction against the law.

As a result of the September 11 ruling overturning the injunction, the provisions in the current medical marijuana that limit providers to no more than three patients, and prohibit them from recouping back end operational costs, are now in full effect according to the state’s attorney general’s office. Until the injunction was overturned, the average provider had 16 patients, and the average production cost covered by registered patients was approximately $240 per ounce.

AL House Health Committee Calls Nov. Med Marijuana Meeting

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 23, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition/Facebook

Ron Crumpton, left, and the Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition (AMMJC) travels the state attending public events and drumming up support for medical marijuana. This shot was taken at the 2012 Boll Weevil Festival in Enterprise.

Years of hard work by the Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition (AMMJC) is starting to pay off.

House Bill 2, The Alabama Medical Marijuana Patients’ Rights Act, is scheduled for a pre-session meeting before the Alabama House Health Committee next month, with experts on medicinal cannabis invited to speak.

“Rep. McClendon is having a meeting of the Health Committee to hear proponents and opponents of Medical Marijuana, November 14, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. in the Joint Briefing Room,” Committee Clerk Mary Ruth Davis emailed bill sponsor Rep. Patricia Todd on Tuesday.

According to Ron Crumpton, co-president of AMMJC, Rep. McClendon told Rep. Todd that testimony on HB 2 will not be limited unless it gets redundant.

Marijuana Advocates File Brief with D.C. Circuit Alleging Federal Policy Harmful

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 23, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

The Daily Chronic

Appeals court issued rare order last week for supplemental briefing on “standing” in landmark federal case

Less than a week after oral arguments in the landmark federal case to reclassify marijuana for medical use, the plaintiffs filed an additional brief late yesterday at the request of the court. In the case Americans for Safe Access v. Drug Enforcement Administration, the D.C. Circuit issued an order last week seeking details on the harm sustained by plaintiff and disabled U.S. Air Force veteran Michael Krawitz as a result of the federal government’s policy on medical marijuana.

The federal appeals court will use this additional briefing to decide whether the plaintiffs have legal “standing” to bring such a lawsuit against the government. The lawsuit argues that the government has acted arbitrarily and capriciously by keeping marijuana classified as a Schedule I substance, a dangerous drug with no medical value.

By ignoring the overwhelming scientific evidence, ASA argues that the federal government has kept marijuana out of reach for millions of Americans who would otherwise benefit from its therapeutic value.

Rep. Kathy Webb Casts Vote For Arkansas Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 22, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

KUAR.org

Rep. Kathy Webb of Little Rock has said she’s voting for the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Act

Democratic Rep. Kathy Webb of Little Rock cast her ballot on Monday, the first day of early voting in Arkansas. According to The Associated Press, Webb reported that she voted “Yes” on the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Act.

On the first day of early voting, Webb cast her ballot for the proposal that, if approved, would make Arkansas the first Southern state to legalize cannabis for medicinal purposes.

Webb, the only openly homosexual elected official in Arkansas, said she didn’t plan on actively campaigning for the measure. She is term-limited and not running for reelection, but said she would have voted for medical marijuana even if she was running for office.

The proposal, Issue 5, would allow patients with certain qualifying conditions to buy marijuana from nonprofit dispensaries with a doctor’s authorization.

Law Enforcement’s Opposition To Med Marijuana Based In Misunderstanding

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 19, 2012 Legislation, Medical

Arkansas Sheriffs Association

The Arkansas Sheriff’s Association and the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police held a press conference on Friday announcing their official opposition to Issue 5, the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Act.

In a statement released to the press on Tuesday, Arkansas Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Ronnie Baldwin claimed they “don’t want people to think law enforcement is not compassionate to the people who would use it and use it responsibly,” but the group is openly trying to take good medicine out of the hands of sick people for reasons that have no basis in fact, according to Arkansans for Compassionate Care.

Law enforcement’s chief concern — that Issue 5 would lead to greater teen drug use — just isn’t accurate. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did a study spanning a 16-year period which showed teen marijuana use actually went down in states with legal medical marijuana programs.

Medical Marijuana Patient Verification and HIPAA Compliance

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 19, 2012 Dispensaries, Medical

Green Medical Group

By Edward Nguyen

If you are a healthcare provider or patient, you have heard about HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Did you also know that computer systems (such as verification systems used to verify medical cannabis patients) that store patient information are also subject to HIPAA security regulations?

Patient verification systems are a cornerstone of the medical cannabis healthcare movement. Like other patient databases, they may store sensitive patient data, such as medical record numbers, patient addresses, patient contact details, diagnoses codes and driver’s license numbers.

Worth Repeating: Update – Medical Marijuana As Schedule +1

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 19, 2012 Legislation, Medical

Punkerslut

Worth Repeating

By Ron Marczyk, RN

Toke of the Town Columnist

Americans for Safe Access

Now, the battle over rescheduling has moved from DEA and HHS to the federal courts.

“The DEA had ignored accumulating evidence of marijuana’s benefits, and so acted “arbitrarily and capriciously” in rejecting the rescheduling petition last year. Federal law requires the agency to take such evidence into account, accusing the Department of Health and Human Services of creating a Catch-22 for medical marijuana advocates by strictly limiting researchers’ access to marijuana, then arguing there is insufficient scientific evidence to merit rescheduling it.”

The present day drug scheduling is an incomplete scale in that it only lists negatives!

Medical marijuana does not fit into the present drug schedule; this unique medicine is so special that its multitude of many actions creates its own stand-alone category, a “positive side,” mirror-image type of drug scheduling.

Melissa Etheridge Endorses Medical Marijuana Ballot Measures

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on October 19, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

MelissaEtheridge.com

Melissa Etheridge: “Medical marijuana made a big difference, instantly”

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Citizens for Patient Rights has announced the endorsement of singer/songwriter and outspoken breast cancer survivor, Melissa Etheridge for its campaigns to allow safe medical marijuana access in Lemon Grove (Prop T), Solana Beach (Prop W) and Del Mar (Prop H).

Medical marijuana is commonly used by cancer patients to combat the adverse symptoms related cancer radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Moreover, studies have shown that compounds found in medicinal marijuana may slow of the growth of cancerous cells.

Melissa experienced first hand the positive benefits of medical marijuana during her own chemotherapy. According to Melissa, “Medical marijuana made a big difference, instantly, within a minute, relieved the nausea, relieved the pain. And all of the sudden, I was normal… I could get out of bed. I could go see my kid. And it was amazing.”

Previous 1 … 90 91 92 93 94 … 203 Next