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When Massachusetts residents cast their ballots during November's general election, about 63 percent voted yes on Question 3, approving the legalization of medical marijuana.
However, questions remain about the exact implications of that vote, as some of the language contained in the ballot initiative makes it clear that the Department of Public Health will have the authority to regulate most aspects of the new program.
The Committee for Compassionate Medicine, comprised of representatives from several local organizations, developed the wording included in the ballot initiative. While the wording was based on medical marijuana laws passed in other states, the intent was to allow the Department of Public Health to develop more specific guidelines, said Matthew Allen, executive director of the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance.
"The intent of the law is to allow marijuana to be used like a prescription medicine," he said. "Under the law, it is up to doctors to determine if medical marijuana is an appropriate treatment option for patients suffering from diseases such as HIV/AIDS, cancer, ALS, and other debilitating conditions."
The law passes the responsibility of developing more elaborate guidelines for the program onto the DPH. Among the DPH's tasks will be defining terms such as "debilitating medical condition," and what constitutes a "60-day supply" of medical marijuana.
The ballot initiative does set several key guidelines. Among those are the fact that there can be no fewer than one but no more than five treatment centers in each of the state's 14 counties, totaling no more than 35 centers. Those numbers were chosen because they create enough treatment centers for patients to have safe access to them, while at the same time making their monitoring and regulation manageable for the state, Allen said.
All of the centers must be nonprofit "to guarantee that service to patients with debilitating conditions is their primary mission," Allen said.
The goal is to use the framework set up by the ballot initiative to create the safest, strictest medical marijuana program in the country, Allen said.
"We look forward to working with the state and local communities to implement the medical marijuana system so patients suffering from debilitating conditions get the medicine they need, [and] communities are safe and secure," he said.
Previous attempts at legalization
The ballot initiative wasn't the first attempt at legalizing medical marijuana in Massachusetts. Over the past decade, several versions of a medical marijuana bills have been filed in the state's Legislature.
Rep. Frank Smizik, a Democrat from Brookline, sponsored a bill known as the Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Act during each of the past three Legislative sessions. That bill actually included more detail than the ballot initiative, said Smizik's legislative aide Amanda Rositano.
"Because the bill could be longer, it actually included some of the regulations that the ballot initiative left up to the Department of Public Health," she said. "There was a lot more specificity."
The bill, for example, included definitions of terms such as "debilitating medical condition" and "qualifying patient." It also outlined guidelines for obtaining a registration card (including a $25 fee and the fact no one under 18 years old can obtain one without parental consent) and more specific guidelines for treatment centers (such as a maximum quantity of marijuana each can possess at one time, and both application and security requirements for treatment centers).
The bill differed from the ballot initiative in other ways, too. While the ballot initiative only allows patients with financial hardships or physical inabilities to access treatment centers to grow marijuana at home, the bill would have allowed any patient who follows regulations to do so. The bill also allowed just 19 treatment centers instead of up to 35 allowed by the ballot initiative.
Although the bill never passed, Smizik's office was happy to see the issue addressed in some way, Rositano said. She said Smizik is interested in staying involved with the issue to make sure the new program is effective and meets patients' needs.
"There was momentum behind the issue, and the patient need was becoming more and more evident," she said. "This is the will of the voters, and we're looking to see it through and help create a program that can be a model for the rest of the country."
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: wickedlocal.com
Author: Evan MacDonald
Contact: The Beacon-Villager Contact Us
Website: MEDICAL MARIJUANA: Looking at law
However, questions remain about the exact implications of that vote, as some of the language contained in the ballot initiative makes it clear that the Department of Public Health will have the authority to regulate most aspects of the new program.
The Committee for Compassionate Medicine, comprised of representatives from several local organizations, developed the wording included in the ballot initiative. While the wording was based on medical marijuana laws passed in other states, the intent was to allow the Department of Public Health to develop more specific guidelines, said Matthew Allen, executive director of the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance.
"The intent of the law is to allow marijuana to be used like a prescription medicine," he said. "Under the law, it is up to doctors to determine if medical marijuana is an appropriate treatment option for patients suffering from diseases such as HIV/AIDS, cancer, ALS, and other debilitating conditions."
The law passes the responsibility of developing more elaborate guidelines for the program onto the DPH. Among the DPH's tasks will be defining terms such as "debilitating medical condition," and what constitutes a "60-day supply" of medical marijuana.
The ballot initiative does set several key guidelines. Among those are the fact that there can be no fewer than one but no more than five treatment centers in each of the state's 14 counties, totaling no more than 35 centers. Those numbers were chosen because they create enough treatment centers for patients to have safe access to them, while at the same time making their monitoring and regulation manageable for the state, Allen said.
All of the centers must be nonprofit "to guarantee that service to patients with debilitating conditions is their primary mission," Allen said.
The goal is to use the framework set up by the ballot initiative to create the safest, strictest medical marijuana program in the country, Allen said.
"We look forward to working with the state and local communities to implement the medical marijuana system so patients suffering from debilitating conditions get the medicine they need, [and] communities are safe and secure," he said.
Previous attempts at legalization
The ballot initiative wasn't the first attempt at legalizing medical marijuana in Massachusetts. Over the past decade, several versions of a medical marijuana bills have been filed in the state's Legislature.
Rep. Frank Smizik, a Democrat from Brookline, sponsored a bill known as the Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Act during each of the past three Legislative sessions. That bill actually included more detail than the ballot initiative, said Smizik's legislative aide Amanda Rositano.
"Because the bill could be longer, it actually included some of the regulations that the ballot initiative left up to the Department of Public Health," she said. "There was a lot more specificity."
The bill, for example, included definitions of terms such as "debilitating medical condition" and "qualifying patient." It also outlined guidelines for obtaining a registration card (including a $25 fee and the fact no one under 18 years old can obtain one without parental consent) and more specific guidelines for treatment centers (such as a maximum quantity of marijuana each can possess at one time, and both application and security requirements for treatment centers).
The bill differed from the ballot initiative in other ways, too. While the ballot initiative only allows patients with financial hardships or physical inabilities to access treatment centers to grow marijuana at home, the bill would have allowed any patient who follows regulations to do so. The bill also allowed just 19 treatment centers instead of up to 35 allowed by the ballot initiative.
Although the bill never passed, Smizik's office was happy to see the issue addressed in some way, Rositano said. She said Smizik is interested in staying involved with the issue to make sure the new program is effective and meets patients' needs.
"There was momentum behind the issue, and the patient need was becoming more and more evident," she said. "This is the will of the voters, and we're looking to see it through and help create a program that can be a model for the rest of the country."
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: wickedlocal.com
Author: Evan MacDonald
Contact: The Beacon-Villager Contact Us
Website: MEDICAL MARIJUANA: Looking at law
