Pubdate: Sat, 29 Mar 2014
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2014 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: John Ingold
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

STATE TELLS MEDICAL POT DOCS: JUSTIFY EXTRA PLANTS

Health Department Proposes Bill Limiting Caregivers to 5 Patients and 
6 Pot Plants, Riling Advocates.

Colorado health officials on Friday announced a new crackdown on 
medical marijuana patients whose doctors have given them permission 
to grow more than the standard number of marijuana plants.

Starting Monday, the Colorado Health Department will send out letters 
to doctors who recommended the elevated plant counts and the patients 
who benefit, requiring them to provide more documentation on the need 
for the extra plants.

Dr. Larry Wolk, the department's executive director, said doctors 
must provide not only medical information about the patients that 
caused the elevated recommendations but also studies showing that the 
patients' conditions require more medical marijuana than average.

Colorado's constitutional medical marijuana provision limits patients 
to six plants each unless "greater amounts were medically necessary 
to address the patient's debilitating medical condition."

"We need information," Wolk said. "The constitution says 'medically 
necessary.'"

Wolk made the announcement Friday at a Health Department-hosted town 
hall meeting on medical marijuana. Also during the meeting, he 
unveiled a proposed bill that would strictly limit medical marijuana 
caregivers-people who grow cannabis for patients who can't grow for 
themselves - to serving only five patients and growing no more than 
six plants per patient. Caregivers can currently apply for a waiver 
to serve more than five patients.

The announcements brought an angry response from the crowd. One 
medical marijuana activist shouted, "Fascist!" as Wolk spoke. Later, 
during public testimony, another activist cursed at Wolk.

"This is criminal," said James Clark Jr., a caregiver from Akron who 
said he serves 25 patients because there are so few caregivers on the 
Eastern Plains. "This is mean. This is hurtful to people who are very sick."

Advocates say the higher plant counts are needed to make edible 
marijuana products and concentrates, which they say are a better way 
to treat some patients.

Colorado has about 3,300 medical marijuana caregivers, Wolk said, and 
24 of them are registered to more than five patients. One caregiver 
serves 82 patients.

Law enforcement officials have repeatedly raised concerns over 
caregivers growing for large numbers of patients or patients who can 
grow large numbers of plants, arguing that they could be a source of 
illegal marijuana sales. A state audit last year recommended that 
lawmakers crack down on caregivers and elevated plant counts.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom