Pubdate: Tue, 03 Apr 2001
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2001 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Fred Brown

SENATE APPROVES MEDICAL POT PLAN

Apr. 3, 2001 - A bill to implement the medical marijuana amendment passed 
by Colorado voters in November won a preliminary vote in the House of 
Representatives on Monday.

Amendment 20, which was ruled off the ballot in 1998 because of 
insufficient signatures and then ordered back on the ballot in 2000, allows 
doctors to prescribe marijuana as a pain reliever for certain chronic 
conditions.

The implementing legislation is House Bill 1371, introduced by first-term 
Rep. Mark Cloer, a Colorado Springs Republican.

The legislation poses a quandary for lawmakers. Marijuana users and 
providers are violating federal law, no matter if the drug is for medicinal 
purposes. But unless the legislature passes a bill authorizing its use, 
lawmakers will violate provisions added to the Colorado Constitution when 
voters approved the Amendment 20 ballot issue.

The amendment says the legislature must act by April 30. The U.S. Supreme 
Court, meanwhile, is due to rule on the legality of medical marijuana laws.

Cloer, the bill's sponsor, voted against the ballot issue, but felt 
compelled to pass the legislation because lawmakers take an oath to uphold 
the state constitution.

Under the bill, patients with a qualifying medical condition, such as 
cancer, would need a doctor's certification and pay a $140-a-year fee to be 
issued a card and included in a state registry. Each registered patient 
could have up to six marijuana plants in his or her home and up to 2 ounces 
of processed pot.

The bill will be up for a final House vote today and then move on to the 
Senate.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D