Pubdate: Fri, 03 May 2002
Source: Statesman Journal (OR)
Copyright: 2002 Statesman Journal
Contact:  http://www.http://www.statesmanjournal.com//
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/427
Author: Susan Tom
Cited: Voter Power http://www.voterpower.org/
Marijuana Policy Project http://www.mpp.org

PATIENTS PUSH MARIJUANA REFORM

Although Sally Younger has been a medical marijuana patient for the past 
three years, she still puts up with pain.

It's not by choice.

Her former caregivers, who legally grew her marijuana, proved unreliable. 
And her $554 monthly disability check didn't go far when the street price 
of marijuana ran $40 for a two-to three-day supply.

So she grows it at home, spending an hour a day tending to the plants even 
when she feels bad.

Three years since the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, or OMMA took effect, 
card-carrying patients such as Younger say the law is working, but needs 
improvement.

"It's just not as fine tuned as it should be," said Younger, a 43-year-old 
Salem resident who suffers from fibromyalgia, a complex of symptoms that 
leaves the afflicted feeling bodywide pain. "It's a fantastic program, but 
there's greed in it. To help people you can't have greed."

Patients say ensuring a steady supply of marijuana is a major roadblock.

Dr. Grant Higginson, state health officer, said OMMA is working as designed.

"It's fundamentally a solid law and program," he said. "There are still a 
number of issues. I expect to see changes through court action, ballot 
measures or legislation."

Higginson is speaking today at the Second National Clinical Conference on 
Cannabis Therapeutics in Portland. He will address a crowd of researchers 
and health professionals about Oregon's experience with the law.

Voters approved OMMA in 1998, giving qualified patients the right to grow 
up to seven plants or designate a caregiver to do so. No sale is permitted, 
but patients can share with one another. The Legislature amended the act in 
1999.

The state is required to maintain a registry of cardholders and verify 
information to law enforcement.

While the program has had its problems o including a Molalla osteopath who 
signed the necessary approval cards for more than 800 patients o some 
supporters want the program to be expanded.

John Sajo, director of Voter Power, said the act is not working well at 
all. Voter Power is sponsoring an initiative, commonly known as Oregon 
Medical Marijuana Act 2, that would amend the original law.

He estimates that tens of thousands could benefit from the act, compared 
with the 2,548 who have been approved by the state to use marijuana for 
medical use. Itis hard to qualify for a card; it's harder to ensure a 
steady supply.

"Every week I have someone crying because they can't get medicine," Sajo said.

The petitioners have until July 5 to get the 66,786 signatures needed to 
put OMMA2 on the November ballot.

The initiative would dramatically expand the original act. More medical 
professionals would be able to qualify patients for the program. A 
caregiver not only would get paid, but also would be able to look after 
more than one patient. Patients or their caregivers would be able to 
increase the number of plants they could grow and the amount of marijuana 
they could possess. And the measure would create dispensaries where 
patients could purchase their medicine.

Stormy Ray, one of the petitioners for the original law, opposes the 
proposed amendment. Ray, who runs a nonprofit Salem resource center for 
patients throughout the state, said it would destroy the current law for 
all patients by turning medical marijuana into a commercial operation that 
runs smack against the federal Controlled Substances Act prohibiting the 
manufacture and distribution of marijuana.

She points to raids on cannabis clubs in California, which has one of the 
most liberal medical marijuana laws, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruling 
against the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative.

Bruce Mirken, spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, 
D.C., said the high court only ruled on one issue: that medical necessity 
is not a valid exception to the federal controlled substances act. It did 
not address other points, including whether the federal government can 
override states' role in regulating the practice of medicine or intrastate 
commerce.

The cooperative is pursing those issues in court, he said.

Medical marijuana laws have been doing well in the eight states where they 
were passed, Mirken said. They are Oregon, Alaska, California, Colorado, 
Hawaii, Maine, Nevada and Washington. There are proposals in various stages 
in Vermont, District of Columbia and Arizona.

A recent poll in 10 states found a majority of the people surveyed 
supported medical marijuana. Four of the states already had laws on their 
books.

"I take that as an indication that folks are happy," Mirken said. "In 
general, things seem to have gone smoothly.i

Although Younger has problems with the current law, she opposes the sale of 
marijuana to patients as a solution to the supply problem.

She says she will support combining two gardens to share expenses, labor 
and plants because there are many indigent, ailing patients who can't do so 
on their own.

Susan Tom can be reached at (503) 399-6744.

More information

The Second National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics will be 
held today and Saturday at the Holiday Inn, Portland Convention Center, 
1021 NE Grand Ave., Portland.

Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. today. Sessions run 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
today and Saturday.

For information: (503) 731-6633
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MAP posted-by: Beth