Pubdate: Mon, 02 May 2016
Source: Register Citizen (CT)
Copyright: 2016 Register Citizen
Contact:  http://www.registercitizen.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/598
Author: Christine Stuart, ctnewsjunkie.com

SENATE OKS MEDICAL POT FOR MINORS

Bill Awaits Governor's Signature

HARTFORD - The Senate gave final passage to a bill Friday that would 
give children under the age of 18 access to non-smokeable medical marijuana.

The bill passed the Senate 2311 after more than three hours of debate.

The legislation, which received overwhelming approval in the House, 
faced stiff opposition from at least one Senator who introduced three 
amendments.

The bill would give minors with severe epilepsy and terminal 
illnesses access to marijuana after the approval of two doctors.

Sens. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton, is passionately opposed to marijuana 
and believes that condoning any use of an "illegal" drug sends the 
wrong message. Boucher has vehemently opposed efforts to establish a 
medical marijuana program and decriminalize small amounts of 
marijuana and has led long debates on those issues in past years.

Friday's effort was no different when it came to the substance of 
Boucher's arguments, but it was briefer than in previous years.

Boucher said her efforts to oppose marijuana use have gotten harder 
over the years because she has been called names that she can't repeat.

"Some have even threatened my life," Boucher said.

She said after she testified in opposition to the proposal at the 
Public Health Committee, a man told her "he wished I would die."

But Boucher said she didn't seek out this issue. "This issue came to 
me," she said.

Boucher said the increase in marijuana has accompanied a opioid and 
heroin epidemic.

She said earlier this month her niece was found dead of a drug 
overdose and it was left to her mother "to identify her body, which 
was marbled black and white with the drugs that had taken her life."

She said she's tried to hide her emotion over the issue in the past, 
but "it's like a kick in the gut every time this subject comes up."

She said she feels obligated to oppose any measure that would bring 
her family or her constituents harm and there isn't enough research 
to show that this treatment is better than other approved drugs on the market.

But desperate mothers whose children suffered mostly from epilepsy 
told the Public Health Committee they are willing to try anything 
that will reduce the number of seizures their children have every 
day. Many mothers testified they were afraid that every seizure might be fatal.

Linda Lloyd, whose 6-year-old son, Henry, also has seizures, broke 
into tears when talking about the fear that his next seizure "is the 
one that won't stop." She said she sometimes thinks "is this the 
seizure that will take my son."

She told the committee in March that the only effective treatment she 
hasn't been able to give her son is medical marijuana.

"I've listened to enough parents to know that this is going to 
relieve the suffering their children are going through," Sen. Stephen 
Cassano, D-Manchester, said. "It's an absolute necessity to have 
access to this treatment. If it lessens their pain, we should be 
doing everything in our power to help them."

Sen. Joe Markley, R-Southington, said he heard moving testimony from 
parents of children who suffered from serious medical conditions that 
may be treated with medical marijuana.

"There's a Libertarian instinct in me that's sympathetic to the 
expansion of these liberties to the choice of the people who are 
consuming it," Markley said. "The other side is the unintended 
consequences of things that we do for very good reasons."

Markley said those who work with youth encouraged him not to support 
the medical marijuana bill because it would encourage the youth to 
try the drug when they are trying hard to keep young people away from it.

Sen. Eric Colemen, D-Bloomfield, said "Parents shouldn't have to 
choose between breaking the law and being branded as criminals in 
Connecticut, or not doing what they need to do to provide relief for 
their children."

The medical marijuana available to children with epilepsy, terminal 
illness, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, uncontrolled intractable 
seizure disorders, or irreversible spinal cord injury with objective 
neurological indication of intractable spasticity, would likely be in 
the form of an oil that's dropped on the tongue.

Connecticut legalized medical marijuana for adults in 2012. There are 
nine dispensaries in the state serving more than 9,400 registered patients.

Connecticut is the only state with a medical marijuana program that 
doesn't give access to minors, according to the National Conference 
of State Legislatures.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom