Pubdate: Fri, 01 Aug 2014
Source: News-Item, The (PA)
Copyright: 2014 Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.newsitem.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3556
Author: Alicia A. Caldwell, Associated Press
Page: 5
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?224 (Cannabis and Driving)

DRIVING HIGH QUESTIONED ON BUSY DAY BY LAWMAKERS

WASHINGTON (AP) - Amid rancorous debate over other weighty issues 
Thursday on Capitol Hill, lawmakers wondered aloud whether driving 
cars after smoking marijuana is dangerous. Among the unanswered 
questions: Would drivers who are "high" travel too fast or too slow for safety?

Rep. John Mica, a Florida Republican who convened the Transportation 
subcommittee hearing, said he's concerned that growing numbers of 
drivers on U.S. roadways are increasingly impaired with a mix of 
drugs and alcohol. But with no test to determine if a driver is high 
on THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, it's nearly 
impossible to gauge the danger. Instead, he said, it's only after a 
fatal crash that investigators can determine if a driver has 
measurable levels of THC in his bloodstream.

"There is no standard test for drivers," Mica said. "We have no 
acceptable test and no way of telling if people are impaired."

Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va., countered that it's just as possible 
that marijuana doesn't pose as dangerous a risk as alcohol for 
drivers, suggesting that high drivers may slow down rather than 
recklessly speed, citing a study by the National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration.

Connolly said studies suggest the effects of pot can dissipate in 
relatively short order.

The concern about high drivers, train conductors or pilots centers on 
the growing availability of marijuana for both recreational users and 
those with a doctor's prescription. In Colorado and Washington state 
adults can buy marijuana from a regular pot shop, while residents in 
nearly two dozen other states still need a prescription.

Regardless of how drivers obtain marijuana, government officials told 
Congress that the drug is still off-limits for those pilots, 
conductors, commercial drivers and others whose jobs are in any way 
regulated by Washington.

The acting director for the Transportation Department's Office of 
Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance, Patrice M. Kelly, said 
millions of people in "safety-sensitive" jobs, such a pilot or subway 
conductor, have been reminded that they can't use pot regardless of 
the laws in their home state.

Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal Schedule 1 drug with 
"no currently accepted medical use." Testing positive, Kelly said, 
will keep someone off the job.

Connolly said he doesn't encourage driving or other activities while 
high, but wants to know more about marijuana's effects.

"No one is arguing that it's a good idea," Connolly said, "but the 
fact of the matter is that we don't know."

Mica has held a series of hearings on the impacts of state legalized 
marijuana and promised to continue asking questions.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom