Spliff Twister
New Member
Medical marijuana proponents were rightly disappointed Tuesday when the Solano County Board of Supervisors declined to support their efforts to acquire government-sanctioned identification cards that would confirm their valid prescriptions.
But even though supervisors ducked the issue, it doesn't mean the campaign is lost.
As County Counsel Dennis Bunting pointed out at the beginning of the hearing, it is not up to supervisors to enact the ID program. The state law authorizing it puts that job squarely in the hands of the county's health department.
Certainly a nod from supervisors would have gone a long way toward prodding Solano's Department of Health and Social Services to get with the program that was enacted by the state three years ago. But on a 2-3 vote, with Supervisors Mike Reagan, John Vasquez and John Silva dissenting, the board failed to make such a recommendation.
That doesn't, however, relieve the health department of its duty to enact the Medical Marijuana Program.
It's hard to believe that anyone is still arguing about this issue a decade after California voters soundly approved Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.
Solano's vote at the time was nearly identical to the statewide count: 55 percent of voters approved it.
Polls taken since then have shown even more residents believe that marijuana should be an option for patients whose doctors prescribe it.
To give patients some assurance that they would not be prosecuted under state or local laws, the California Legislature three years ago approved Senate Bill 420. It tasked each county health department with the job of issuing identification cards to patients who choose to obtain them.
Under the law, the health departments are to review patient applications, make sure the prescribing doc
tor is a legitimate and licensed physician and verify that he or she has indeed prescribed marijuana for the applicant. If everything checks out, it issues a photo ID identifying the patient as a legitimate user of medical marijuana.
Twenty counties - including every one in the Bay Area except Solano - now issue those IDs.
The other 38 counties are apparently awaiting the outcome of a court case filed against the state by San Diego County, which argues that it should not be forced to follow state laws that conflict with federal ones.
That case won't be heard until November and no doubt it will go through more than one appeals process before it is settled.
Meanwhile, Solano patients who find some measure of relief with medical marijuana are left to worry that they might be subject to arrest.
Certainly the ID program does nothing to prevent patients from being harassed by federal officials.
But it would go a long way toward giving them peace of mind about local agencies. Even the California Highway Patrol recognizes the legitimacy of county-issued medical marijuana ID cards.
And that's the other benefit of this program: It helps local law enforcers to readily identify the people who are entitled to possess marijuana from those who are not.
Supervisor Duayne Kromm had it right on Tuesday when he pointed out that the county is an agent of the state and therefore has a duty to comply with state laws.
The voters have spoken and the Legislature has spoken.
It is past time for Solano County's health department to start issuing medical marijuana IDs.
Newshawk: Spliff Twister - www.420Times.com
Source: The Reporter ( Vacaville, CA)
Pubdate: October 1, 2006
Copyright: © Copyright 2006, The Reporter, Vacaville, California
Website: The Reporter: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Vacaville News
But even though supervisors ducked the issue, it doesn't mean the campaign is lost.
As County Counsel Dennis Bunting pointed out at the beginning of the hearing, it is not up to supervisors to enact the ID program. The state law authorizing it puts that job squarely in the hands of the county's health department.
Certainly a nod from supervisors would have gone a long way toward prodding Solano's Department of Health and Social Services to get with the program that was enacted by the state three years ago. But on a 2-3 vote, with Supervisors Mike Reagan, John Vasquez and John Silva dissenting, the board failed to make such a recommendation.
That doesn't, however, relieve the health department of its duty to enact the Medical Marijuana Program.
It's hard to believe that anyone is still arguing about this issue a decade after California voters soundly approved Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.
Solano's vote at the time was nearly identical to the statewide count: 55 percent of voters approved it.
Polls taken since then have shown even more residents believe that marijuana should be an option for patients whose doctors prescribe it.
To give patients some assurance that they would not be prosecuted under state or local laws, the California Legislature three years ago approved Senate Bill 420. It tasked each county health department with the job of issuing identification cards to patients who choose to obtain them.
Under the law, the health departments are to review patient applications, make sure the prescribing doc
tor is a legitimate and licensed physician and verify that he or she has indeed prescribed marijuana for the applicant. If everything checks out, it issues a photo ID identifying the patient as a legitimate user of medical marijuana.
Twenty counties - including every one in the Bay Area except Solano - now issue those IDs.
The other 38 counties are apparently awaiting the outcome of a court case filed against the state by San Diego County, which argues that it should not be forced to follow state laws that conflict with federal ones.
That case won't be heard until November and no doubt it will go through more than one appeals process before it is settled.
Meanwhile, Solano patients who find some measure of relief with medical marijuana are left to worry that they might be subject to arrest.
Certainly the ID program does nothing to prevent patients from being harassed by federal officials.
But it would go a long way toward giving them peace of mind about local agencies. Even the California Highway Patrol recognizes the legitimacy of county-issued medical marijuana ID cards.
And that's the other benefit of this program: It helps local law enforcers to readily identify the people who are entitled to possess marijuana from those who are not.
Supervisor Duayne Kromm had it right on Tuesday when he pointed out that the county is an agent of the state and therefore has a duty to comply with state laws.
The voters have spoken and the Legislature has spoken.
It is past time for Solano County's health department to start issuing medical marijuana IDs.
Newshawk: Spliff Twister - www.420Times.com
Source: The Reporter ( Vacaville, CA)
Pubdate: October 1, 2006
Copyright: © Copyright 2006, The Reporter, Vacaville, California
Website: The Reporter: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Vacaville News
