Pubdate: Mon, 13 May 2013
Source: Chicago Sun-Times (IL)
Copyright: 2013 Sun-Times Media, LLC
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/5QwXAJWY
Website: http://www.suntimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/81

FACT AND FICTION ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA

For seriously ill folks looking for relief, a big moment has arrived. 
Here's hoping the Illinois Senate doesn't blow it.

A bill legalizing medical marijuana likely will come up for a vote 
this week. The bill already has passed the House. In years past, less 
restrictive versions of the very same bill have prevailed in the 
Senate. Yet, we worry. We fear that fear will overcome reason. We 
worry that speculation about opening the door to drug legalization 
will trump the facts. We worry that compassion for people in pain 
will get lost in the political shuffle.

Here are the facts: The bill legalizing medical marijuana before the 
Illinois Senate is among the most restrictive of its kind in the 
nation, strictly regulating who can get medical pot, when and where.

Under the bill, creating a four-year pilot program, prescriptions 
would be limited to about 30 illnesses, such as cancer, Crohn's 
disease and multiple sclerosis, and could be written only by a doctor 
with an established relationship to the patient. Patients would be 
limited to 2.5 ounces every two weeks, purchased from designated dispensaries.

Every sale would be recorded for tracking purposes. Patients could 
not grow their own pot, as is allowed in California.

If anything, Illinois' bill may be too restrictive and cumbersome. 
Eighteen other states plus D.C. already allow for the use of medical marijuana.

Then there's this: Pot works. THC, a main ingredient, can reduce the 
nausea caused by anti-cancer drugs and is effective in improving the 
appetite of AIDS patients. Pot also can help in treating the pain of 
multiple sclerosis and eye pressure caused by glaucoma. And arguably, 
it's more benign, cheaper and has fewer side effects than other 
painkillers, such as Vicodin and Oxycodone.

In the name of compassion, here's hoping facts and reason prevail in 
the Illinois Senate.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom