Pubdate: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 Source: Orlando Sentinel (FL) Copyright: 2014 Orlando Sentinel Contact: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/325 Note: Rarely prints out-of-state LTEs. Author: Ben Pollara Note: Guest columnist Ben Pollara is campaign manager for United for Care. Note: Opposing OPED in same issue. Amendment 2: Good for Florida? YES: CRITICS' SCARE TACTICS CLOUD MEDICINAL BENEFITS The truth about medical marijuana is clear for anyone to see ... Patients are getting relief, lives are being saved [without the predicted] social ills. ... From page A1 Sometimes, decisions that seem difficult at a glance can be boiled down to one simple choice. I believe this is the case with Amendment 2, a measure on the ballot this November that would allow for doctors to recommend the medical use of marijuana by patients with debilitating diseases and medical conditions. Voters should ask themselves: Must we continue to criminalize the gravely ill for trying to use a medicine that could dramatically improve their quality of life, or should we give physicians and their patients - not politicians - the right to make choices regarding medical care? Much has been said by opponents of Amendment 2 in order to distract voters from this fundamental question. However, their arguments read like exactly what they are - desperate and disingenuous attempts to distort the true nature and purpose of this initiative. Amendment 2 establishes the right of seriously ill Floridians to use medical marijuana if their doctor recommends it. It then enables the most qualified possible agency, the Florida Department of Health, to draft regulations on how that right must be responsibly administered. It's really as simple as that. Opponents have argued that Amendment 2 lacks specific regulations and therefore should be rejected - that is a false and misleading argument to vote "no." The work of regulating medical marijuana under this amendment is left to the Department of Health and the Legislature, purposely, so they can implement a system best for our state. In their attempt to continue to deny this treatment to sick and suffering Floridians, opponents have used fear tactics ranging from the absurd to the downright objectionable. They've even gone so far as to suggest medical marijuana could lead to date rape, a claim that is as far-fetched as it is offensive. The truth about medical marijuana is clear for anyone to see. In the 23 other states plus the District of Columbia that have already approved its use, patients are getting relief, lives are being saved, and the social ills predicted by hysterical opponents have simply failed to materialize. A recent study published in the "Journal of Law and Economics," using data from the National Highway Safety Administration, found that medical marijuana states have not seen an increase in traffic fatalities. Another study from the University of Texas at Dallas using FBI figures did not find a surge in crime rates in medical-cannabis states. In fact, it recorded a slight decrease in homicides and assaults. Moreover, multiple studies have found no rise in teenage cannabis consumption in medical-marijuana states. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Report, past-month marijuana use among American teenagers has decreased from 25.3 percent in 1995 to 23.4 percent in 2013. That means that at the same time medical-marijuana laws were being adopted by nearly half the states in the nation, teenage consumption dropped by almost two percentage points. Other recent studies suggest an almost 5 percent reduction in suicide rates in medical-marijuana states and an almost 25 percent reduction in deaths from opioid overdoses. These are statistical studies, and as we all know, association does not necessarily mean causation. Yet, these figures give us reasons not just to set aside our fears regarding medical-cannabis laws, but to hope they may hold the key to a better future for many. Florida voters are both compassionate and well informed. It is the reason we are so optimistic that soon we will be able to bring relief to those who could benefit from the medical use of marijuana. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom