Pubdate: Wed, 17 Nov 2010
Source: Tri-City Herald (WA)
Copyright: 2010 Tri-City Herald
Contact:  http://www.tri-cityherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/459

MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAWS NEED LEGISLATURE'S HELP

A dozen years later, and Washington state still hasn't figured out
what to do about medical marijuana.

It's time to get it right.

The ballot measure legalizing marijuana to treat chronic pain and
certain other conditions was approved by voters in 1998.

But what must have seemed simple to the nearly 60 percent of
Washington voters who favored the initiative has proved to be a
complicated mess for patients.

Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles is drafting a bill for the next legislative
session that could finally accomplish what voters set out to do.

She's starting out on the right foot, approaching the problem in
cooperation with patients, advocates and others with an interest in
resolving the issue.

More importantly, she has the right goal in mind.

"For a long, long time I have wanted to do whatever I can to provide
clarification in the law and address the issues that are paramount to
patients and caregivers -- how they can access a safe and reliable
supply of medical marijuana," Kohl-Welles recently told Herald
reporter Michelle Dupler.

That's not even close to how things work today, despite the clear
mandate from state voters.

Those suffering from a terminal or debilitating illness are allowed to
possess a 60-day supply of marijuana with a written recommendation
from a doctor.

But in most of the state, it's practically impossible to obtain the
drug legally. As a result, most people who need marijuana to ease
their suffering resort to the same black market that supplies illicit
drug users.

Worse yet, following the rules doesn't always protect legitimate
patients from arrest for marijuana possession.

The law's fine print merely allows the accused to offer medical use as
a defense against marijuana charges. That's a particularly
incon-venient way to make medi-cine available to those who need it.

It's also one flaw in current law that Kohl-Welles hopes to eliminate
with legislation next year.

"I don't think it's right to have patients arrested," Kohl-Welles told
the Herald. "That doesn't make sense to me."

Of course, coming up with a law that does make sense is easier said
than done.

In California, the marijuana industry has all but dropped the pretense
of medical necessity. It's an open secret that virtually anyone can
readily find a doctor willing to write a prescription for pot.

But victims of cancer, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, AIDS and chronic
pain shouldn't be denied the relief that marijuana can provide because
others might abuse the drug.

That argument isn't raised against the array of prescription
painkillers that are routinely abused.

Fixing Washington's medical marijuana laws to help the sick without
creating a new and easy source for recreational users is a challenge.

But it's not beyond our abilities. If lawmakers want to fix the
problem, they can. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake