Pubdate: Mon, 31 Mar 2014
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2014 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/letters.html
Website: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Jim Bronskill

BREAKING THE LAW OR GOING BROKE

Many Pain-Stricken Users Say They Can't Afford Marijuana From Licensed
Producers

They might have a temporary reprieve, but pain-stricken Canadians who
grow their own medical marijuana say they could soon face a difficult
choice: go without the weed they need or break the law to get it.

A Federal Court judge recently granted an injunction that allows
thousands of patients to continue cultivating their own marijuana at
home, or designate someone to grow it for them - at least until their
legal challenge of planned new rules can be argued more fully. But the
federal government is determined to change the system, even if
Tuesday's full-fledged launch will be delayed.

"Health Canada does not endorse the use of marijuana," said department
spokeswoman Sara Lauer, indicating federal officials administer a
medical pot program only because the courts have said there must be
reasonable access to the drug. "The previous program was open to
serious abuse."

Growing marijuana at home introduces hazards including mould, fire,
toxic chemicals and the threat of violent theft by criminals, Health
Canada says.

The number of people authorized to possess - and often grow -
marijuana under the old regime rose to almost 38,000 this year from
fewer than 100 in 2001. The government argues that figure is likely to
jump dramatically, compounding the problems that plague a program that
cost $16 million to run in 2011-12.

It plans to allow only select commercial producers - 12 have been
licensed to date - to grow marijuana under "secure and sanitary
conditions" for distribution by mail to medically approved patients.

If the courts ultimately reject the legal challenge to the plan led by
several home growers, anyone other than a licensed producer
cultivating pot would be breaking the law. Licensed firms are offering
marijuana at between $5 and $13.50 a gram, with at least three
offering "compassionate pricing" for clients on a fixed income, as low
as $3 a gram, Lauer said.

"The regulations introduce conditions for a competitive industry and
it is possible that the prices will fall over time in response to
competition and innovation."

One company, Mettrum, says clients who qualify for provincial or
federal income assistance, or have an annual income below $30,000, can
receive a 30-per-cent discount on the first 30 grams of medical
marijuana they buy each month.

Still, some patients argue the new system will deny them a safe,
affordable supply of the particular strains of marijuana that make
their often-debilitating conditions bearable. Alison Myrden of
Burlington, Ont., says it costs just pennies for her designated grower
to produce the more than 100 grams of marijuana she needs each day to
relieve symptoms of multiple sclerosis and trigeminal neuralgia, a
disorder of the nervous system that causes especially intense discomfort.

Myrden, 50, says she cannot afford to switch to a licensed producer.
"It's for the people who have money," she said in an interview. "The
government has not taken that into consideration - that the majority
of these people, including myself, are on full disability and
completely marginalized."

A former Ontario correctional officer, Myrden is used to playing by
the rules. "I don't want to break the law."

Others say they will have little choice if the Federal Court upholds
the new system.

Neil Allard, who helped spearhead the legal challenge, says in a court
filing it could cost about $200 a day - $72,000 a year - to buy the
marijuana he needs to get relief from symptoms of his serious
neuro-immune disorder.

Currently the Abbotsford, B.C., man grows his own supply for between
$200 and $300 a month. Allard, 59, says even at $5 a gram it would
cost him "more than my monthly income," adding he likely will have to
"seek out a black market product" that is less expensive.

David Hebert of Surrey, B.C., the designated grower for his wife
Tanya, faces a similar dilemma.

He says it costs just 50 cents a gram to supply her with the two to 10
grams she consumes a day to control nausea, violent vomiting and pain
from diabetes. Hebert has told the court he looked at the marijuana
available from licensed producers and found the prices too steep.

"Consequently if I am no longer able to produce for Tanya at a
reasonable cost, we will have no alternative but to try and seek out
alternative medicine through the black market or illicit market to
assist her," he says in an affidavit.

"This is something we have always tried to avoid and concerns me
insofar as our safety and security is concerned."

[sidebar]

Facts and figures

Medical marijuana is subject to new federal rules on Tuesday that
require patients to acquire their pot from government-approved
producers rather than home grown supplies. A temporary Federal Court
injunction has delayed full implementation of the new regime until a
legal hearing.

37,800 Number of authorizations to possess under the old
rules

25,000 Patients authorized to grow for themselves

3,900 People designated to grow for someone else

8 Expected price (in dollars) of dried marijuana, per gram, under the
new rules: varies among producers and their individual products

5 Price (in dollars) of dried marijuana, per gram, when purchased
directly from Health Canada under the old rules

12 Number of commercial producers currently licensed under the new
regime

1.3 Sales projections (in billions of dollars) for the new industry by
2024

166 Projected total additional cost (in dollars) to all approved
patients as a result of the new system for 10 years

454,000 Projection of number of medical marijuana patients by
2024

3.3 million Estimated number of home grown plants under the old
system

454 Number of applications to Health Canada, as of early February, to
become a licensed producer, with about 25 new applications coming in
each week  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D