Pubdate: Thu, 07 Feb 2013
Source: Iowa State Daily (IA Edu)
Copyright: 2013 Iowa State Daily
Contact:  http://www.iowastatedaily.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1227
Author: Daniel Tacconi

NEW BILL OUTLINES PRESCRIPTION, PRODUCTION, SALE, CONSUMPTION OF
MEDICAL MARIJUANA

A bill recently introduced in the Iowa Senate would allow physicians
to prescribe marijuana to patients with chronic illnesses.

According to the Iowa Poll, 64 percent of Iowans are in favor of
allowing medical marijuana in Iowa. Since the poll was conducted in
2010, four states have added themselves to the growing list of the now
18 states which allow medical marijuana.

Sen. Joe Bolkcom, a sponsor of the proposed bill, is unsure when Iowa
will join the list.

"We're still in an educational process with policy makers on the
issue. There are certainly members of legislature that are opposed,"
Bolkcom said.

As the bill enters the legislature, constituents' communication with
their representatives is vital.

"Like any issue here, members of the legislature need to hear from
people back at home that care about this issue," Bolkcom said.

The proposed bill outlines who can prescribe, produce, sell and
consume medical marijuana. But even with the proposed regulation,
opposition still has concern about how the drug would be controlled if
it is legal for medicinal use.

"Over the last number of years working on this issue, I've gotten
hundreds of emails from Iowans that would like to have legal access to
marijuana to meet their healthcare needs," Bolkcom said. "There are a
substantial number of chronically ill people that would get some
benefit from being able to legally access marijuana to manage their
pain and medical conditions."

These medical conditions are defined in the proposed bill as being
chronic or debilitating diseases or treatment that produces pain which
does not respond to ordinary medicine or surgery.

Some examples of conditions are cancer, glaucoma, HIV-positive status
and agitation of Alzheimer's.

If passed, the bill would allow doctors to prescribe marijuana by
reclassifying it as a schedule II controlled substance rather than
schedule I.

"I think law enforcement is going to feel better if they know that
only people with chronic medical conditions that have a doctor's
prescription have access to legal marijuana. I share the concern of
law enforcement about that, and any program that would be established
in Iowa would have to be tightly controlled," Bolkcom said.

Last week, a similar bill was introduced and shot down quickly in the
Iowa House. It's likely this bill will have the same fate.

"We generally do things that constituents want, and I think we're in
the process on this issue where the advocates need to educate their
legislatures about why this is so important," Bolkcom said.

Bolkcom hopes that there will be a subcommittee within the next couple
of weeks to discuss the bill. 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D