Pubdate: Sat, 10 Dec 2011 Source: Regina Leader-Post (CN SN) Copyright: 2011 The Leader-Post Ltd. Contact: http://www.leaderpost.com/opinion/letters/letters-to-the-editor.html Website: http://www.leaderpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/361 Author: Glen McGregor, Postmedia News CHANGES IN WORKS FOR MARIJUANA LAWS Eighteen-year-old Adam Greenblatt was lying in bed one morning when his mother burst into his room and demanded to know if he had any drugs. Greenblatt, who had been busted for possession while smoking up with some friends outside his high school in suburban Toronto, thought his mom was hassling him about pot again. But this time was different. Adam's father wanted to give marijuana a try, his mother said. Get out your dope, she told him. Michael Greenblatt, a dentist, had suffered from multiple sclerosis since his late 30s. The neurological condition left him with a twisted arm and unable to practise dentistry. After 20 years of taking toxic pharmaceuticals that were getting less effective at controlling his spasms and nausea, he was desperate for relief. "I was in so much pain I had to try something else," he recalls. He had never tried pot, even in high school or university in the 1960s, and didn't want to start by smoking. Adam sauteed some cannabis in butter for him and smeared it on a sandwich. Later that day, Adam's mom called him on his cellphone and told him to come home. "Your father wants the joint," she told him. Sitting around the kitchen table, Adam showed his father how to smoke and inhale marijuana. "It was remarkable," Adam says. "It was probably the first time ever I'd seen my dad smile and be pain-free." Today, Michael Greenblatt is one of more than 5,000 authorized marijuana users in Canada. His son is his designated grower, providing him with about 10 grams a day in edible form. For Adam, the profound effect the cannabis had on his father's symptoms was eyeopening. He went on to run as a candidate for the Marijuana Party and work in a Montreal "compassion club," clinics that operate in a legal grey zone by providing marijuana to sick people outside the Health Canada program. Greenblatt left the clinic shortly before it was raided by police. He now runs his own medical marijuana dispensary in Montreal to help other patients and advocates through the Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries. Greenblatt sells medical cannabis products to about 65 customers, both by drop-in and mail order. Today, with the Conservative government bringing in new regulations governing the use of medical marijuana, the future of operations like Greenblatt's is uncertain. Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq says the changes to the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) are intended to balance the needs of patients with concerns that home-grow operations are dangerous to health and safety. "We have heard complaints and concerns from many fire departments and many mayors," she said. Aglukkaq says she is also concerned about reports of criminal activity within the medical marijuana program. But Aglukkaq insists there is no link between changes to the medical marijuana program and the Tories omnibus crime legislation, which was passed this week in the House of Commons and also casts a shadow on the program's future. The toughening of drug trafficking laws means that anyone caught sharing or selling marijuana will face mandatory jail sentences. Health Canada is currently conducting consultations with stakeholders on the proposed changes to the regulations. If the new rules are adopted, no longer will patients be able to legally grow pot at home or have someone grow it for them. Under the current system, approved patients can produce their own marijuana plants or designate a person they know to grow it for them. Data obtained by the Ottawa Citizen through the Access to Information Act shows that, between 2001 and 2007, about 55 per cent of approved MMAR patients were licensed to grow and another nine per cent could use designated growers. For these patients, the incentive to grow is both one of cost and of quality. Many complain that Health Canada's contracted producer, Prairie Plant Systems in Manitoba, produces only one strain of cannabis and it has a lower content of active ingredients. Under the proposed regulations, Health Canada would license private growers to provide marijuana products by mail-order to approved patients. The prohibition on growing is just one in a basket of changes that Health Canada has suggested making to the medical marijuana program as it moves into its second decade. The regulations would also relieve Health Canada bureaucrats of the responsibility for approving applications that have already been signed off by doctors. Marijuana advocates are generally supportive of this change, but warn it will do nothing to overcome the major obstacle for patients: few doctors are agreeing to sign the papers because the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) does not support the program. Aglukkaq says solving this problem will require better research and more consultations with the CMA and provincial health ministries. - ------------------------------------------------------------ [sidebar] MEDICAL MARIJUANA Since 2001, Canada has allowed patients with serious illnesses to apply for authorization to possess and, in some cases, grow marijuana. The rules are called the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR). WHO CAN APPLY? Under the MMAR, people who are classified as Category 1 can apply to relieve symptoms of these diseases: . Cancer . Multiple sclerosis . HIV/AIDS infection . Spinal cord injury or disease . Severe form of arthritis . Seizures caused by epilepsy Category 1 patients need their doctor to fill out a form recommending their treatment with medical marijuana. Then their application must be approved. Category 2 patients have one or more debilitating symptoms of another illness not covered in Category 1. TYPES OF AUTHORIZATIONS . A patient can be authorized to possess marijuana produced for Health Canada by Prairie Plant Systems. The typical amount allowed varies from between one and five grams. It is sold for $5 plus taxes per gram. . A patient can be authorized to possess marijuana they have grown themselves. They can purchase a package of 30 seeds for $20 plus taxes. . A patient can be authorized to possess marijuana grown by a person they designate as their producer. PROPOSED CHANGES . Eliminate the categories of conditions or symptoms . Eliminate the requirement to have Health Canada approve the applications. Doctors alone would determine who gets medical marijuana. . End the provisions that allow patients to grow their own marijuana. Instead, Health Canada would license approved commercial suppliers. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.