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As Arizona voters prepare to decide whether to legalize medical marijuana, state health officials and city zoning committees are confronting the reality that they may soon have to regulate a whole new industry in the state, fraught with specific challenges: a product some fear will taint the community, patients that must be licensed and accounted for and strict zoning requirements — and they have a tight deadline to get it all done.
Arizona's Proposition 203 would allow licensed physicians to recommend medical marijuana for the treatment of debilitating medical conditions such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, Alzheimer's disease and glaucoma. Approved patients would register with the state health department for identification cards that would allow them to obtain up to two-and-a-half ounces of marijuana every two weeks at any of up to 124 non-profit dispensaries around the state. Patients living 25 miles or more from the nearest dispensary would be permitted to cultivate up to 12 marijuana plants for medicinal purposes.
If the measure passes, the Arizona Department of Health Services would have to establish procedures for regulating and licensing medical marijuana dispensaries, implementing an electronic database to track patient records and determining state rules for caregivers who assist patients in obtaining their marijuana supply. The agency would face a deadline to put regulations in place of 120 days after the certification of the election.
The agency's director, Will Humble, said of the challenges they would face, developing the electronic database would be the "heaviest lifting." The database would not only help the agency keep track of patients, but also monitor the amount of marijuana they purchase and aid police in correctly identifying who is a medical marijuana patient and who is not.
"I want everything to be 100 percent electronic," Humble said. "It costs 10 times as much to look at a paper document than to deal with them electronically."
Humble said that his agency will mimic successful regulations in other states' medical marijuana policies, such as New Jersey's definition of doctor/patient relationship.
"Plagiarism is a virtue, not a vice when it comes to administrative code," Humble said.
Because of the language of the proposition, if the health department is not prepared after the 120-day deadline, any patient with a doctor's recommendation will be approved for medical marijuana. Humble is confident that the health department will be aptly prepared if the measure passes.
"We'll get it done," he said. "Is it enough time? Emphatically, 'no.'"
Andrew Myers, campaign manager for the Arizona Medical Marijuana Policy Project, said the 35-page piece of legislation grants broad authority to the health department but provides them sufficient time to get regulations in place.
"I think 120 days is plenty of time," Myers said. "I think we'll probably see dispensaries up and running about this time next year."
Among the many other important decisions that must be made is local zoning of medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation sites. Committees have been formed statewide to begin discussing the zoning issue should the measure pass.
Alejandro Chavez, a member of Phoenix' Encanto Village planning committee, believes it is important to be proactive in the zoning process and remember that dispensaries are small businesses. His committee has already begun discussing possible zoning restrictions.
"Why wait?" Chavez said. "We only have 120 days so we need to be proactive and make sure we don't wind up with bad zoning."
Chavez said the Encanto Village Planning Committee plans to model its medical marijuana dispensary zoning requirements on those implemented in areas of California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington.
"We don't want a dispensary by a school or church, but we also wouldn't want it in some back alley. [Patients] would be filling their prescriptions and should not feel like they're committing a crime," he said.
Arizonans vote on Proposition 203 on Nov. 2. If it passes, Arizona would be the 15th state in the nation to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes.
NewsHawk: MedicalNeed:420 MAGAZINE
Source:crawfordondrugs.com
Author: David E. Robles
Contact: Amanda@CrawfordOnDrugs.com
Copyright: 2010 crawfordondrugs.com
Website:AZ officials begin planning to regulate medical marijuana |
Arizona's Proposition 203 would allow licensed physicians to recommend medical marijuana for the treatment of debilitating medical conditions such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, Alzheimer's disease and glaucoma. Approved patients would register with the state health department for identification cards that would allow them to obtain up to two-and-a-half ounces of marijuana every two weeks at any of up to 124 non-profit dispensaries around the state. Patients living 25 miles or more from the nearest dispensary would be permitted to cultivate up to 12 marijuana plants for medicinal purposes.
If the measure passes, the Arizona Department of Health Services would have to establish procedures for regulating and licensing medical marijuana dispensaries, implementing an electronic database to track patient records and determining state rules for caregivers who assist patients in obtaining their marijuana supply. The agency would face a deadline to put regulations in place of 120 days after the certification of the election.
The agency's director, Will Humble, said of the challenges they would face, developing the electronic database would be the "heaviest lifting." The database would not only help the agency keep track of patients, but also monitor the amount of marijuana they purchase and aid police in correctly identifying who is a medical marijuana patient and who is not.
"I want everything to be 100 percent electronic," Humble said. "It costs 10 times as much to look at a paper document than to deal with them electronically."
Humble said that his agency will mimic successful regulations in other states' medical marijuana policies, such as New Jersey's definition of doctor/patient relationship.
"Plagiarism is a virtue, not a vice when it comes to administrative code," Humble said.
Because of the language of the proposition, if the health department is not prepared after the 120-day deadline, any patient with a doctor's recommendation will be approved for medical marijuana. Humble is confident that the health department will be aptly prepared if the measure passes.
"We'll get it done," he said. "Is it enough time? Emphatically, 'no.'"
Andrew Myers, campaign manager for the Arizona Medical Marijuana Policy Project, said the 35-page piece of legislation grants broad authority to the health department but provides them sufficient time to get regulations in place.
"I think 120 days is plenty of time," Myers said. "I think we'll probably see dispensaries up and running about this time next year."
Among the many other important decisions that must be made is local zoning of medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation sites. Committees have been formed statewide to begin discussing the zoning issue should the measure pass.
Alejandro Chavez, a member of Phoenix' Encanto Village planning committee, believes it is important to be proactive in the zoning process and remember that dispensaries are small businesses. His committee has already begun discussing possible zoning restrictions.
"Why wait?" Chavez said. "We only have 120 days so we need to be proactive and make sure we don't wind up with bad zoning."
Chavez said the Encanto Village Planning Committee plans to model its medical marijuana dispensary zoning requirements on those implemented in areas of California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington.
"We don't want a dispensary by a school or church, but we also wouldn't want it in some back alley. [Patients] would be filling their prescriptions and should not feel like they're committing a crime," he said.
Arizonans vote on Proposition 203 on Nov. 2. If it passes, Arizona would be the 15th state in the nation to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes.
NewsHawk: MedicalNeed:420 MAGAZINE
Source:crawfordondrugs.com
Author: David E. Robles
Contact: Amanda@CrawfordOnDrugs.com
Copyright: 2010 crawfordondrugs.com
Website:AZ officials begin planning to regulate medical marijuana |
