Pubdate: Thu, 22 May 2008 Source: Daily Reporter, The (Columbus, OH) Contact: 2008 The Daily Reporter Website: http://www.sourcenews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4774 Author: Jonathan Nawn, Daily Reporter Staff Writer Cited: Ohio Patient Network, http://www.ohiopatient.net/ Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?197 (Marijuana - Medicinal - Ohio) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal) MEDICAL CANNABIS BILL TO BE INTRODUCED IN OHIO SENATE Sen. Tom Roberts, D-Trotwood, unveiled plans on Wednesday to introduce legislation defining and regulating the legitimate medical use of cannabis in Ohio. If made into law, Roberts' Ohio Medical Compassion Act would allow qualified patients, those with the approval of primary caregivers, to use medicinal marijuana by virtue of a cardholder system. "The OMCA would give patients the opportunity to choose the type of medicine that most effectively treats them," Roberts said. "Our laws should reflect the latest in medical research, which has shown that medicinal cannabis has a variety of benefits for treating pain, nausea and other symptoms related to a wide range of disease." Lacking a state-sanctioned distribution system, the act permits patients or primary caregivers to purchase cannabis from the criminal market. Per a licensing process through the Ohio Department of Health, patients who are determined by their primary caregiver to have a debilitating illness may possess a maximum of 200 grams and 12 mature plants. Following guidelines to be formulated by the Ohio Department of Agriculture, cannabis also potentially could be grown by licensed patients. The act was developed through a collaborative process between Roberts' office and the Ohio Patient Network, a non-profit group that advocates the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes. "We have been lobbying the various legislators throughout the state and Sen. Roberts was very receptive and positive and took interest in this issue," said OPN President Robert Ryan. According to Ryan, the act is based on the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, passed in 1998, and is designed to be revenue neutral with no technical financial burden on the state. He added that registration fees in Oregon for medicinal cannabis actually generate revenue. However, for those patients who are not capable of providing for their own use, caregivers may receive reimbursement for the costs associated with providing patients with cannabis. If enacted, the Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Agriculture would be required to establish an advisory board to consider granting medicinal use of cannabis for Ohio patients with debilitating medical conditions, roughly defined by Roberts as conditions similar in gravity to cancer and multiple sclerosis. "As opposed to some of the previous legislation in this area, it's very comprehensive and it's pushing for a best practices law," said Roberts. The act also contains protections from arrest from patients and allows law enforcement to easily identify legitimate patients. Furthermore, patients cannot be denied custody or visitation of a minor for acting in accordance with the OMCA. The act does not require employers to accommodate the medical use of cannabis in the workplace and prohibits operation of a motor vehicle and smoking of cannabis in public places. Ohio Patient Network co-founder Mary Jane Borden said that while the introduction of the act is a huge step forward, the licensing component and lack of a prescription-based distribution system creates too many obstacles between patient and product. "Those barriers will prevent adoption by the public. If this isn't taken through channels in which people find credibility, they will be reluctant to find it as medicine," said Borden. "They may say 'Oh, there's so many people I have to go through,' or if there's a pall cast on it because of past or present illegality, I think that's a problem." Roberts emphasized to The Daily Reporter that the essence of the act is in its title: compassion. "We know from conversations with some folks that there is a lot of pain involved in some of these conditions," said Roberts. "The current lack of medical alternatives highlights the urgent need for Ohio to join a growing list of other states and pass the OMCA, which is long-overdue." Twelve states - including Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Rhode Island and Washington - have decriminalized penalties for the medicinal use of cannabis. "In an era of scientific breakthroughs and medical advances, patients should not be put in the position of choosing between living a normal life and living a healthy life," said Roberts.