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.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom