Jacob Bell
New Member
Bill sponsor Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-Seattle) said in a press release she wants regulations for the medical cannabis to make it safer for patients.
Amending the law to clarify the processes and amount of medical marijuana usage for licensed growers and dispensaries will allow a safe and consistent source of medicine for patients who qualify for treatment, Kohl-Wells said in the press release.
In the press release, Kohl-Wells said current law provides for the authorization of medical marijuana, but unless patients grow it themselves or get it from a designated provider, the law doesn’t offer a legal, accessible pathway for patients.
Philip Dawdy, spokesman for the Washington Cannabis Association, said he is pleased the bill cleared the Senate. He said he wants cannabis to be accessible for those who are in medical need, but thinks the bill needs huge changes in terms of amendments.
“It’s one of those bittersweet victories,” he said.
Dawdy said he thinks the first amendment in the bill that should change concerns advertising. The advertising ban amendment stops newspapers and magazines from advertising medical marijuana. He said the government cannot control the print media since it is unconstitutional.
The proposed bill will not allow the advertisement of cannabis to the general public that promotes or tends to promote the use or abuse of cannabis. According to the bill, displaying cannabis, including artistic depictions, is a violation.
Dawdy said the bill also includes an amendment that would give cities an option to opt out of the bill, meaning certain cities could ban medical cannabis businesses.
“What’s that going to do to the patients?” Dawdy said. “They’re going to have to drive a long way (to get cannabis for medical uses) or result to using the black market.”
He said studies have been done that prove the use of cannabis is safer than chronic alcohol abuse and many drugs given on a daily basis, such as Paxil, an antidepressant associated with increasing the risk of suicide.
“(Other drugs) are handed out like candy from a lot of doctors,” he said.
Morgan Fox, communications manager of the Marijuana Policy Project, said he supports Washington having safe medical marijuana dispensaries.
“There are many medical marijuana patients who are either too sick to grow their own medicine, or lack the technical expertise and ability to grow the strains that provide them with the most relief,” he said.
Fox said one of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s judges called medical marijuana one of the safest medicines known to man.
“We are talking about a plant that has never directly caused an overdose or health-damage death in over 5,000 years of reported use,” he said.
On the other hand, Emily Gibson, director of the Student Health Center, said the new bill is unnecessary since medical marijuana is already legal for certain medical conditions and diagnoses.
“It is not necessary to expand because there are no conditions where cannabis is the first line therapy,” she said. “There are many more effective medications with fewer potential side effects for most debilitating conditions.”
Gibson said few studies exist concerning the medical use of cannabis that are controlled appropriately, as most evidence is anecdotal.
“Many patients believe cannabis is beneficial because they have been self-medicating and believe it helps them with a variety of symptoms,” she said.
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: westernfrontonline.net
Author: Sarah Beaulieu
Contact: https://westernfrontonline.net/contact
Copyright: The Western Front
Website: Bill to regulate medical marijuana passes in Senate
Amending the law to clarify the processes and amount of medical marijuana usage for licensed growers and dispensaries will allow a safe and consistent source of medicine for patients who qualify for treatment, Kohl-Wells said in the press release.
In the press release, Kohl-Wells said current law provides for the authorization of medical marijuana, but unless patients grow it themselves or get it from a designated provider, the law doesn’t offer a legal, accessible pathway for patients.
Philip Dawdy, spokesman for the Washington Cannabis Association, said he is pleased the bill cleared the Senate. He said he wants cannabis to be accessible for those who are in medical need, but thinks the bill needs huge changes in terms of amendments.
“It’s one of those bittersweet victories,” he said.
Dawdy said he thinks the first amendment in the bill that should change concerns advertising. The advertising ban amendment stops newspapers and magazines from advertising medical marijuana. He said the government cannot control the print media since it is unconstitutional.
The proposed bill will not allow the advertisement of cannabis to the general public that promotes or tends to promote the use or abuse of cannabis. According to the bill, displaying cannabis, including artistic depictions, is a violation.
Dawdy said the bill also includes an amendment that would give cities an option to opt out of the bill, meaning certain cities could ban medical cannabis businesses.
“What’s that going to do to the patients?” Dawdy said. “They’re going to have to drive a long way (to get cannabis for medical uses) or result to using the black market.”
He said studies have been done that prove the use of cannabis is safer than chronic alcohol abuse and many drugs given on a daily basis, such as Paxil, an antidepressant associated with increasing the risk of suicide.
“(Other drugs) are handed out like candy from a lot of doctors,” he said.
Morgan Fox, communications manager of the Marijuana Policy Project, said he supports Washington having safe medical marijuana dispensaries.
“There are many medical marijuana patients who are either too sick to grow their own medicine, or lack the technical expertise and ability to grow the strains that provide them with the most relief,” he said.
Fox said one of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s judges called medical marijuana one of the safest medicines known to man.
“We are talking about a plant that has never directly caused an overdose or health-damage death in over 5,000 years of reported use,” he said.
On the other hand, Emily Gibson, director of the Student Health Center, said the new bill is unnecessary since medical marijuana is already legal for certain medical conditions and diagnoses.
“It is not necessary to expand because there are no conditions where cannabis is the first line therapy,” she said. “There are many more effective medications with fewer potential side effects for most debilitating conditions.”
Gibson said few studies exist concerning the medical use of cannabis that are controlled appropriately, as most evidence is anecdotal.
“Many patients believe cannabis is beneficial because they have been self-medicating and believe it helps them with a variety of symptoms,” she said.
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: westernfrontonline.net
Author: Sarah Beaulieu
Contact: https://westernfrontonline.net/contact
Copyright: The Western Front
Website: Bill to regulate medical marijuana passes in Senate
