Medical

Browsing: Medical

Cannabis Leaders Call On Administration To Respect State Laws

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 20, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

President Obama seeks campaign contributions from Oakland community after federal interference causes hundreds to lose jobs and healthcare benefits

News conference scheduled in conjunction with presidential visit: Monday, July 23, 2012 at 1:45 p.m.

Oaksterdam University, 1600 Broadway, Oakland, CA

President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit the heart of America’s medical marijuana community just days after his appointed U.S. Attorney, Melinda Haag, intentionally and admittedly targeted Harborside Health Center – a state-legal medical cannabis facility – in violation of administration policy.

On July 23, President Obama is scheduled to give a speech at the Fox Theater in Oakland. To coincide with this event, advocates are planning a permitted, peaceful protest originating at Oakland’s City Hall; a press conference at Oaksterdam University; and concurrent actions in Oregon, Washington, and Colorado.

Multiple businesses in the vicinity of the Fox Theater are also expected to display green flags on their storefronts in solidarity with local medical cannabis collectives targeted by the administration.

Medical Marijuana Access Point Has Drive-Thru Window

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

Steve Elliott ~alapoet~

This collective, in Olympia, Washington, is a real innovator among medical marijuana access points

Washington’s Sonshine Organics Also Features A Marijuana Farmer’s Market Twice A Month

A medical marijuana access point in Olympia, Washington, has taken convenience to the next level, opening a drive-through window for patients.

Having visited about 70 collectives now in my capacity as “Toke Signals” marijuana/dispensaries reviewer for the Seattle Weekly, the drive-through window at Sonshine Organics is a feature I’ve never seen before. To my knowledge, this is the first one in the Pacific Northwest.

According to Sonshine’s Sarena Haskins, the drive-through window is open on Fridays and Saturdays for the convenience of patients. “For example, busy mothers who don’t want to leave their kids in the car,” she told me.

Drug Czar: No Marijuana For Veterans With PTSD

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 18, 2012 Medical, News

AllGov

A petition which aimed to persuade the Obama Administration to allow military veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder to use medical marijuana was rejected by the White House.

Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), wrote last month that marijuana is not a “benign drug,” and does not meet standards for safe or effective medicine, reports Patricia Kime at USA Today. (Apparently, “real” medicines are supposed to kill people in droves — you know, like all the poisons Big Pharma is peddling. Pot doesn’t do that.)

It’s particularly ironic, in a crazy-making sort of way, for the Drug Czar to answer any questions about legalizing marijuana for any purpose, since he is bound by law to oppose marijuana legalization. But if Kerli was feeling any of the irony, he didn’t let on; he was a good robot, mouthing meaningless platitudes on a dead stage.

Bill Would Lift Medical Marijuana Evidence Ban In Federal Court

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 18, 2012 Legislation, Medical

Americans for Safe Access

This photo was taken in 2003, at the time the first “Truth in Trials” Act was introduced. Rep. Sam Farr is depicted with Ashley Epis, the daughter of Bryan Epis, who is a patient convicted without a defense and currently serving out a 10-year sentence in federal prison.

Congressional Medical Marijuana Bill, the ‘Truth In Trials’ Act, Would Correct Unfair Federal Trials

Late on Tuesday, U.S. Representative Sam Farr (D-CA) and 18 co-sponsors (15 Democrats and three Republicans) introduced HR 6134, the “Truth in Trials” Act, bipartisan legislation to allow defendants in federal criminal prosecutions the ability to use medical marijuana evidence at trial, a right not currently afforded them.

Because of a June 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Gonzales v. Raich, the government has the discretion to enforce federal marijuana laws even in medical marijuana states. The Raich ruling also allows federal prosecutors to exclude all evidence of medical use or state law compliance in federal trials, virtually guaranteeing the convictions of medical marijuana patients and providers.

Children Are Using Medical Cannabis, And That’s A Good Thing

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 16, 2012 Medical

Jason David

Jayden David’s father Jason reports that his walking is better — Jayden was previously non-ambulatory. He can now swim, an activity he adores, without having a seizure

“But, what about the children?!”

Why children with Dravet syndrome are using cannabis and why consistent access to their medicine is important

By Sarah Russo

CannCast.com

Parents of some children with Dravet syndrome, a rare and severe type of epilepsy, are using CBD-rich cannabis to treat their condition. Finding this medicine is difficult and getting consistent access to quality medicine is even more so.

Dravet syndrome is a severe myoclonic epilepsy whose onset occurs in infancy. Those with Dravet may have upwards of 100 seizures per day. The most intense episodes can last for 15 minutes to up to an hour. There is no known cure. The best available treatment is to minimize seizures, which are precipitated by environmental stress.

The longer a person has an epileptic attack, the higher the likelihood that prolonged damage could occur. Dravet seizures are so intense and long that brain development is delayed. In severe cases, a seizure may cause cardiac arrest. Each day can vary drastically for those with Dravet. There are a variety of pharmaceutical anticonvulsants available, but none of them eliminate seizures, and all have side effects.

Recently, a group of families affected by Dravet have turned to CBD-rich cannabis as a treatment for their children. These families have formed a Facebook group that allows members to provide support, compare notes, and to share experiences.

Feds Strong-Arm 3 States On Cannabis Food Stamp Deduction

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 16, 2012 Medical, News

Arizona Medical Marijuana Blog

Oregon, New Mexico and Maine will no longer allow certain applicants for food stamps to deduct medical marijuana expenses from their incomes after federal officials threatened to slap the three states with penalties.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a nationwide memo to regional directors of the food stamp program after newspaper The Oregonian contacted the agency about the deductions last week. The newspaper surveyed the 17 medical marijuana states and found that Oregon, New Mexico and Maine allowed deductions for the cost of medicinal cannabis.

In deciding whether a family is poor enough to receive food stamps, the three states had allowed applicants to deduct medical expenses from their incomes. Since all three states have legalized the medicinal use of marijuana, they had counted the cost associated with buying medical cannabis as a qualifying medical expenses, reports Noelle Crombie.

Federal Judge Orders Defendant To Stop Taking Marinol

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 16, 2012 Medical, News

Asian American Bar Association

Federal judge Donna Ryu ordered a defendant to stop taking the legal prescription drug Marinol because it causes the court a problem on drug tests

A medical cannabis activist has been ordered by a judge to find another legal drug than Marinol to treat his chronic back pain.

Jose Gutierrez’s doctor, Frank Lucido, testified at a pretrial detention hearing that he had prescribed Marinol because it is the best legal drug for his condition, but the federal magistrate Donna Ryu objected that it caused her a “problem” because drug tests cannot differentiate it from marijuana, which is illegal under federal law.

In fact, there does exist a test that can discriminate between Marinol and marijuana, according to Dale Gieringer of California NORML, but it is not available through the particular laboratory that has been hired by U.S. Pretrial Services.

“The bottom line is that a US court is asking a defendant who has not yet faced trial to give up legal cannabinoids in favor of addictive opiates because of the inadequacies of its own laws and drug detection technology,” Gieringer said.

Gutuierrez faces felony charges for “assaulting a federal officer” stemming from a scuffle in which he was beaten to the ground by federal agents during the Oaksterdam University raid in April. The offense carried a prison sentence of up to five years.

How Marijuana Affects Memory: It’s Not The Neurons

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 13, 2012 Medical, News

SodaHead

Getting mice stoned can actually result in important scientific discoveries. Research published in March in Cell magazine reveal how marijuana impairs working memory, the short-term memory we use to hold on to and process thoughts. The classic example is of the stoner who forgets the point he was making, mid-sentence.

To study exactly how cannabis affects working memory in such a fashion, Giovanni Marsicano of the University of Bordeaux in France and his colleagues removed cannabinoid receptors from neurons in mice, reports Ruth Williams at Scientific American. These receptors are proteins that respond to marijuana’s chief psychoactive ingredient, THC (tetrahydrocannabinol).

The mice whose cannabinoid receptors had been removed from their neurons were just as forgetful as regular mice when given THC; that is to say, they were just as bad at memorizing the position of a hidden platform in a water pool. But when the cannabinoid receptors were removed from astrocytes, a type of glial cells, the mice could find the platform just fine while on THC.

The research reveals that astrocytes have a major role in working memory, with the results suggesting that the role of glia in mental activity has been overlooked. Glial cells were previously viewed as little more than the “glue” which supports neurons.

Researchers Say Marijuana Useful in Treating Obesity Disorders

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 12, 2012 Medical, News

Marijuana.com

Advocates Applaud Scientific Advances, Decry Federal Interference in Medical Marijuana States

Research currently underway by GW Pharmaceuticals and the University of Buckingham has recently shown that some of the compounds found in marijuana can have a beneficial effect for people suffering from metabolic diseases associated with obesity.

In animal trials, it was discovered that these compounds acted as appetite suppressants, lowered cholesterol, decreased fat buildup, and improved insulin response to sugars. These qualities could be used to reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and stroke associated with obesity, as well as aid in weight management programs.

GW Pharmaceuticals is already working on a variety of marijuana-based drugs for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, cancer pain, and other conditions. Most other research into the medical properties of marijuana has been stalled in the United States, thanks to the policies of the federal government, which discourages medical marijuana research and will only fund studies looking for dangers of cannabis, as opposed to its benefits.

Studies Spanning 12 Years: Medical Marijuana Works

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 12, 2012 Medical, News

Los Angeles Cannabis Clubs

A historic, 12-year experiment in medical marijuana research which brought new science to the debate on the place of cannabis in medicine has found that the herb offers broad benefits for pain control from injuries, HIV, strokes and other conditions.

The Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research — established and funded to the tune of $8.7 million by the California Legislature to answer the question of whether marijuana has any therapeutic value — has now all but completed the most comprehensive studies into pot’s effectiveness ever conducted in the United States, reports Peter Hecht at the Sacramento Bee.

Previous 1 … 96 97 98 99 100 … 203 Next