Pubdate: Wed, 29 Feb 2012
Source: Student Printz, The (MS Edu)
Copyright: 2012 The Student Printz
Contact:  http://www.printz.usm.edu/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2404
Author: Tyler Hill

MISS. LEGISLATOR PUSHES FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA

A Mississippi legislator recently introduced a bill that would
legalize the use of medical marijuana in the state. The bill was
introduced by Democratic Senator Deborah Dawkins from Harrison County
in January and has managed to stay afloat despite heavy opposition.

Medical marijuana is currently prohibited by federal law, and it's
classified as a schedule I drug. Despite this, the Drug Enforcement
Administration, charged with enforcing federal drug laws, usually does
not interfere with medical marijuana patients and their caregivers,
according to Americans for Safe Access.

The federal government regulates drugs through the Controlled
Substances Act, which doesn't recognize the difference between medical
and recreational use of marijuana.

Likewise, the state of Mississippi also classifies marijuana as a
schedule I drug, but this bill would place it in the next category:
schedule II. It would join drugs like methadone, morphine and
oxycodone in the schedule II category, which are available through
prescription.

Medical marijuana has become a popular issue in the past few years,
and many states are proposing legislation along with Mississippi,
including its neighbor Alabama. Some states, such as Alaska and
California, have already passed laws legalizing its use.

Known as Senate Bill 2252, it's "an act to authorize the medical use
of marijuana by seriously ill patients under a physician's
supervision."

Dawkins uses research from the National Academy of Sciences' Institute
of Medicine to support her bill. It states, "Research has discovered a
beneficial use of marijuana in treating or alleviating the pain or
other symptoms associated with certain medical conditions."

This bill isn't new to the legislature, however. This marks the fourth
consecutive year Dawkins has introduced the bill, and she says it's
time for Mississippi to allow its use.

"I think most people want their doctors to help them make that
decision," Dawkins said earlier this month. "To me, we're taking
something away from them and their physicians."

In spite of the federal government banning marijuana use, it continues
to pay for extensive medical research on the plant. Mississippi even
has a research lab of its own on campus at the University of
Mississippi.

Ole Miss has been in contract with the federal government since 1968
to grow, harvest and process marijuana and ship it to licensed
facilities across the country.

Dawkins told WLOX news that she believes it is unfair that Mississippi
provides medicine for other states but not its own.

Zachary Clarke, a senior history major, agrees with Dawkins's bill and
believes it should be passed in Mississippi.

"There is no denying the medical advantages that cannabis provides,"
Clarke said. "Mississippi is probably prime in agriculture for growing
it, so it would be economically beneficial to the state."

The bill does specify how much an ill patient can possess but allows a
patient to own an "adequate supply." In the bill, adequate supply
means the amount can't exceed three mature marijuana plants, four
immature plants or thirty grams of usable marijuana per each mature
plant.

Clarke expressed his position on marijuana legalization in
general.

"One day, I believe that the constitution and civil liberties will
come into play, and I hope that it wouldn't be just a medical
endeavor, but a universal legalization," Clarke said.

The bill isn't receiving all positive reports, however. The Gulf Coast
Substance Abuse Task Force sent an open letter to Senator Dawkins and
all Mississippi senators stating that the bill needs more clarity and
more supportive evidence.

"An issue of such magnitude should be based on current up to date
information only and certainly not on any single study," the letter
said.

To read the bill in its entirety, visit www.billstatus.ls.state.ms.us
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MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.