Pubdate: Wed, 05 Jun 2013
Source: Sun, The (Yuma, AZ)
Copyright: 2013 The Sun
Contact: http://www.yumasun.com/sections/opinion/submit-letters/
Website: http://www.yumasun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1258
Author: Howard Fischer

REPEAL OF MEDICAL POT LAW APPEARS UNLIKELY

PHOENIX - The state's more than 38,000 medical marijuana users are in
no danger of losing their medication, at least not at the ballot box.

Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, said Wednesday he cannot drum up
enough support among legislative colleagues for his bid to ask voters
next year to rescind Arizona's 2010 Medical Marijuana Act. That not
only kills the plan for this year but also makes it unlikely to be
resurrected next year.

The problem, Kavanagh said, is political. "The majority of the members
oppose medical marijuana,'' he said.

"But there are a lot of people who have expressed concern that that
(ballot measure) would bring out people who would not vote Republican
in the November election,'' Kavanagh said. And he said some GOP
lawmakers feel that could result in Democrats picking up strength in
the Republican-controlled Legislature.

Kavanagh was clearly miffed at the injection of politics into what he
sees as a public health and safety matter. "I think that is a cold,
calculating and, from a policy perspective, poor criteria for
supporting something,'' he said. "But that's the political reality.''

The 2010 law allows those with a doctor's recommendation to get a
state-issued card allowing them to obtain up to 2 1/2 ounces of
marijuana every two weeks from a state-licensed dispensary. The state
Department of Health Services showed 38,506 cardholders as of April
16.

Kavanagh, a former police officer, called it bad public policy to
allow voters and not the Food and Drug Administration to decide what
is medicine.

He also pointed out that the measure was approved by a narrow margin -
just 4,340 votes out of more than 1.6 million votes cast. Kavanagh
argued the results would have been different had foes had the time and
finances to mount a proper campaign.

Kavanagh said there is one way of killing the Arizona law: Have the
federal government enforce the Controlled Substances Act, which makes
the possession and sale of marijuana a federal felony. So far, though,
the position of the U.S. Department of Justice is that going after
medical marijuana users where that is legal under state law is not a
high priority given the government's limited resources.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt