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Marijuana Policy Project Alert

May 12, 2010

 

Free screening of award-winning medical marijuana documentary Waiting to Inhale this Monday

Dear friends:

Can’t afford the price of admission to see a movie these days? You’re not alone. But there’s good news: this Monday the New Deal Café in Greenbelt will be hosting a free screening of Waiting to Inhale, a documentary examining the arguments surrounding the movement to legalize marijuana for medical treatment. Here are the details:

What: Free screening of Waiting to Inhale

Where: New Deal Café, 113 Centerway, Greenbelt, MD 20770

When: Monday, May 17, 7:00 p.m. (Optional vegan buffet dinner at 6:30 — $13)

Produced by Jed Riffe and funded in part by the Marijuana Policy Project, Waiting to Inhale examines the debate over marijuana’s medical efficacy and whether and how to make it available to seriously ill patients suffering from diseases such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, and multiple sclerosis. Among other awards, the film was named Best Documentary at the Eureka International Film Festival and the New Jersey Film Festival, and won the 2007 CINE Golden Eagle. You can check out a preview of the film here.

Following the film, MPP’s Karen O’Keefe will lead a discussion about the film and legislation recently considered in Maryland and passed in Washington D.C. As Director of State Policies, Karen was the lead drafter of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act and has actively lobbied for the passage of medical marijuana laws in state legislatures around the country.

For more, please visit waitingtoinhale.org or contact Cam MacQueen at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Dan Riffle
Legislative Analyst
Marijuana Policy Project

 

We are required by federal law to tell you that any donations you make to MPP may be used for political purposes, such as supporting or opposing candidates for federal office.

 

Marijuana Policy Project Alert

May 5, 2010

 

FINALLY: District Council unanimously approves medical marijuana legislation

Passage of bill implements medical marijuana program 11 years in the making.

Dear friends:

In yet another sign of the growing acceptance and support of medical marijuana, the Council of the District of Columbia yesterday gave unanimous, final approval to legislation that would place our nation’s capital alongside 14 other states in allowing doctors to recommend medical marijuana for seriously ill residents suffering from cancer, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, and other debilitating illnesses. The measure would also create a government-regulated distribution system to provide marijuana to qualifying patients though 5-8 dispensaries located throughout the District. The bill now goes to the mayor’s office for approval and, once signed, will be transmitted to Congress for a mandatory 30-legislative-day review period. If approved as expected, the effective date for the legislation would be mid-July.

Not only did the Council give its approval to the bill, but the amount of marijuana patients can purchase could also be raised. Previously, the maximum potential amount was 2.5 ounces. Under an amendment offered by Councilmember Phil Mendelson, the mayor will now be able to raise that limit to 4 ounces. Unfortunately, several other amendments offered by Councilmember Jim Graham that would have improved upon the bill by allowing Virginia and Maryland physicians to make recommendations and providing for civil discrimination protections for patients were defeated with Councilmember Mendelson and Councilmember David Catania leading the opposition.

Nonetheless, yesterday’s vote represents a victory 11 years in the making. District voters approved Initiative 59 with nearly 70% support in 1998, but Congress quickly put the measure on hold by including a rider preventing the initiative from taking effect in the appropriations bill that provides funding to the District. MPP succeeded in removing the "Barr amendment" (after then-Rep. Bob Barr) late last year, and immediately went to work lobbying the Council to implement the initiative.

Now that members of Congress from around the country will have an opportunity to see a properly regulated medical marijuana program in person, perhaps we’re closer than ever to seeing federal legislation to protect medical marijuana patients. MPP would like to express appreciation to Teresa Skipper, the D.C. Patients Advocacy Coalition, and countless other patients and activists who help make this day possible. Congratulations to D.C. voters and patients who’ve been waiting 11 years for this victory, and, as always, thank you for your continued support of the Marijuana Policy Project.

Sincerely,

Dan Riffle
Legislative Analyst
Marijuana Policy Project

 

We are required by federal law to tell you that any donations you make to MPP may be used for political purposes, such as supporting or opposing candidates for federal office.

 

 

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Marijuana Policy Project Alert

April 20, 2010

 

Your input needed: D.C. Council expected to vote on medical marijuana today

Draft amendments to legislation answer some patient concerns, leave others unresolved.

Dear friends:

The D.C. Council may vote today on legislation to amend Initiative 59. The proposal would get a second vote in May. Please share your thoughts on implementation of medical marijuana with your councilmembers now.

Tell your DC councilmembers to put patients and voters first — tell them you want to see a medical marijuana program that resembles the one voters approved in Initiative 59.

Those of you in attendance at February’s hearing before the committees on Public Safety and the Judiciary as well as Health will be happy to know that this latest incarnation addresses many of the concerns you helped bring to the council’s attention. For instance, the bill no longer requires patients to seek recommendations from "primary care physicians," ensuring access for those too poor to see the same doctor regularly or, like many veterans, whose doctors are federal employees. The amended bill also reduces the minimum distance from which dispensaries must be located from schools — down to 300 feet from 1,000 feet — easing zoning and location concerns.

Still, several aspects of the bill now being considered raise concerns over the ability of patients to have safe, reliable access to medicine. For instance, the list of conditions for which medical marijuana could be utilized is needlessly restrictive. This would be only the second law in the country to completely exclude severe or chronic pain as a symptom or condition for which medical marijuana could be used as treatment. The bill would also mandate that patients use only marijuana or paraphernalia obtained from a District dispensary, and that they do so only in their own homes. A simple ban on smoking in public would be a much better and easier way to address legitimate concerns. Additionally, the bill limits the amount of marijuana that cultivation centers could grow to 95 plants, which would drive up costs and raise serious concerns about the ability of program supply to meet patient demand. Other concerns include:

• The right of patients to cultivate their own medicine will not be addressed until at least 2012, and is not guaranteed even then.
• Only physicians licensed in D.C. can make recommendations; a concern for the many District residents who see physicians in Maryland or Virginia.
• Patients would be limited to acquiring only 2 ounces of medical marijuana in any 30-day period. Patients in the federal government’s own “Investigational New Drug” program receive upwards of 9 ounces in that same time span.
• Dispensary transaction records identify patients by name rather than registry ID number, compromising patient privacy.

If you haven’t already, please do take just a minute or two to use our automated system to send your councilmembers a quick e-mail. When you’re done, go ahead and forward this on to a friend.

Thanks for all your help in shaping this legislation. We’ll be sure to keep you posted as the process moves forward.

Sincerely,

Dan Riffle
Legislative Analyst
Marijuana Policy Project

We are required by federal law to tell you that any donations you make to MPP may be used for political purposes, such as supporting or opposing candidates for federal office.