Pubdate: Fri, 21 Jun 2013
Source: Coast Reporter (CN BC)
Copyright: 2013 Coast Reporter
Contact:  http://www.coastreporter.net/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/580
Author: John Gleeson

FEDS ANNOUNCE MAIL-ORDER MEDICAL POT

Ottawa's decision to phase out both government and personal medical 
marijuana production came as no surprise to patient advocates who 
opposed the new rules.

"I'm not surprised a bit," said Ric Bills, who organized a rally 
protesting the proposed changes in Sechelt earlier this year. "I 
didn't think public comments would change what they had in store. The 
Harper government doesn't seem to care about patients whose lives are 
stake. They put it all on public safety. They're really sticking it 
to the people."

On June 10, Federal Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced Ottawa 
was proceeding with its plan to stop producing and distributing 
medical pot and is also removing the right of patients or their 
designates to grow their own plants.

Under the new system, all production will shift to private companies 
operating under contract to Health Canada and prescribed patients 
will only be able to obtain medical pot by mail order. A suggestion 
in the draft regulations to allow pharmacists to dispense the product 
was scrapped after the Canadian Pharmacists Association strongly 
objected to the plan.

The changes are expected to mean significantly higher prices for 
patients who currently grow their own, and that will breathe new life 
into the black market, Bills predicted.

"The black market will get more profitable because if people can't 
grow it themselves, they'll go to the black market for it. Some 
people can't afford it. They'll keep growing and risk their freedom, 
and I guess some will be in pain. It's pretty backward," he said.

Bills, who was a lawyer in the U.S. before relocating to Halfmoon 
Bay, said Canada is "really behind the curve" compared to states such 
as Colorado and Washington, which are legalizing and planning to tax 
recreational marijuana.

"They're going ahead. We're going backwards," he said.

The new system, he said, will likely attract commercial operators who 
are in it for the money.

"You can't really know patients through a mail order system. It's 
very impersonal."

Both medical pot programs will operate concurrently until March 31, 
2014, when the current regulations will be repealed, Health Canada 
said in a release.

Explaining the reason for the change, Health Canada said its medical 
pot program had grown exponentially since 2001 from 500 to more than 
30,000 authorized persons.

"This rapid increase has had unintended consequences for public 
health, safety and security as a result of allowing individuals to 
produce marijuana in their homes," the release said. "Under the new 
regulations, production will no longer take place in homes and 
municipal zoning laws will need to be respected, which will further 
enhance public safety."

Aglukkaq confirmed details of the new program during a press 
conference held on June 10 in an Ottawa fire hall.

"While the courts have said that there must be reasonable access to a 
legal source of marijuana for medical purposes, we believe that this 
must be done in a controlled fashion in order to protect public 
safety," Aglukkaq said. "These changes will strengthen the safety of 
Canadian communities, while making sure patients can access what they 
need to treat serious illnesses."

Bills questioned the number of fires that were actually sparked by 
medical marijuana grow-ops, and said the cost of related home 
invasions nationwide quoted by government -- about $2 million per 
year -- was a "pretty pathetic" figure.

"I think they're blowing up their statistics and the harm of it all, 
and it's not going to do away with medical marijuana grows," Bills said.

Saying education and inspections would be a far better approach, 
Bills reiterated a theme expressed by patients and growers at the 
Sechelt rally in February.

"The Harper government doesn't want it to work. They're going to 
spend a lot of money dragging it through the courts, and they're 
going to lose, because the courts have been clear that it has to be 
reasonable access," he said.

The new rules, he added, are "just scary" in light of the 
Conservatives' mandatory minimum sentencing provisions and civil 
forfeiture laws, which could result in unlicensed growers having 
their homes seized.

"There's Charter rights involved -- that's what people don't 
understand," Bills said. "They're constitutional rights and 
government is taking them away."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom