Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Salem – Local activist Gary "Gigi" Gill was among those from Salem who headed to Boston Tuesday for a rally to advocate for improved access to medical marijuana, as the state Department of Public Health mulls changes to regulations governing its medical pot use program.
The proposed amendments would allow nurse practitioners, not just physicians, to certify patients for use and let dispensaries post prices online. The changes would also allow for the registration for medical marijuana use by institutional caregivers, such as hospice organizations, long-term care facilities, nursing or medical facilities.
Advocates say the changes do not go far enough to ease patient access or provide for confidentiality.
Even with the November passage by voters for adult recreational use, advocates like Gill say medical marijuana needs to be separate, due to access and confidentiality concerns. The process since medical marijuana was approved in 2012, advocates say, has proved cumbersome for those who are disabled by illness and seeking the drug's palliative effects.
In Salem, Alternative Therapies Group's marijuana dispensary on Grove Street was the first dispensary in the state to be approved to operate in June 2015. The DPH's Medical Use of Marijuana Program website lists nine dispensaries total approved to sell in the state, with nearly 34,000 active patients, 2,725 active caregivers, 173 registered physicians and 38,877 active physician certifications.
Members of the Boston-based Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, whose executive director is Salem resident Nicole Snow, held the rally Tuesday in Boston.
While allowing nurse practitioners to prescribe medical marijuana is a positive change, Snow said, more needs to be done.
"They are already put through too many hoops and it's cost prohibitive, and it's not sensitive to patient needs," she said.
Her organization backed the 2012 ballot question that legalized medical use of marijuana in the Bay State. Snow said the state needs to go further in streamlining access to medical marijuana, and to do so, regulators need to listen to patients.
For example, an annual $50 registration fee can be cost prohibitive to a disabled person living on a fixed income, although the state does allow waivers for those with financial hardships. The registration process can still be daunting. Qualifying for hospice care should be enough to qualify for medical marijuana use, Snow said.
Separate treatment
When asked about the recent passage of adult recreational use in Massachusetts, Snow said: "Our statute is completely different."
While recreational use has been legalized, sales are another matter. A sparsely attended end-of-the-year informal session of the Legislature delayed implementation of retail store sales by six months into the second half of 2018, according to news reports.
Snow said with the passage of adult use, patients are asking if they should even renew their medical marijuana registration cards, although they do need to do so to get into a medical marijuana dispensary.
Gill's story
Gill, an activist on LGBT rights who is also known as Duchess Gigi, says the measures do not go far enough to ensure safe access for patients.
He testified as both an activist and as a personal caregiver to his late partner of 31 years, describing his partner's last 10 years as "hell on Earth."
Gill said he did what he could for his partner, taking him to doctors and chemotherapy appointments, while trying to get him access to medical marijuana – when nothing else worked – to provide some relief from the pain caused by his cancer.
His partner, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1991, and which developed into full-blown AIDS, tried some marijuana to help relieve the pain and give him an appetite, and to help him sleep.
Robert J. "Jimmy" Webb died in the Kaplan Family Hospice House in Danvers on Sept. 3, 2014.
They tried to obtain a registration card, but were unsuccessful at the time, according to Gill. Without legal protections, organizations such as hospice providers face concerns about liability when it comes to providing patients with medical marijuana products, said Gill.
He is advocating the state revamp its medical marijuana laws before addressing the more lucrative adult use. Gill said there should be more dispensaries, better availability and easier access to medical products, as well as a faster response to patient applications, a process that can take up to six weeks to get a registration card.
Prices for medical marijuana also need to be reduced for those on a fixed income, he argued.
Adult use, he said, should be separated from storefront sales of marijuana, given the stigma around diseases such as AIDS.
"You need medical for private confidentiality," he said.
State Rep. Paul Tucker, D-Salem, said there is nothing in front of lawmakers yet on the medical marijuana issue, so it would be premature for him to comment.
Material from the State House News Service was used in this report.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Local Activists Advocate For Medical Marijuana Changes
Author: Ethan Forman
Contact: (978) 283-7000
Photo Credit: iStock
Website: Gloucester Times
The proposed amendments would allow nurse practitioners, not just physicians, to certify patients for use and let dispensaries post prices online. The changes would also allow for the registration for medical marijuana use by institutional caregivers, such as hospice organizations, long-term care facilities, nursing or medical facilities.
Advocates say the changes do not go far enough to ease patient access or provide for confidentiality.
Even with the November passage by voters for adult recreational use, advocates like Gill say medical marijuana needs to be separate, due to access and confidentiality concerns. The process since medical marijuana was approved in 2012, advocates say, has proved cumbersome for those who are disabled by illness and seeking the drug's palliative effects.
In Salem, Alternative Therapies Group's marijuana dispensary on Grove Street was the first dispensary in the state to be approved to operate in June 2015. The DPH's Medical Use of Marijuana Program website lists nine dispensaries total approved to sell in the state, with nearly 34,000 active patients, 2,725 active caregivers, 173 registered physicians and 38,877 active physician certifications.
Members of the Boston-based Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, whose executive director is Salem resident Nicole Snow, held the rally Tuesday in Boston.
While allowing nurse practitioners to prescribe medical marijuana is a positive change, Snow said, more needs to be done.
"They are already put through too many hoops and it's cost prohibitive, and it's not sensitive to patient needs," she said.
Her organization backed the 2012 ballot question that legalized medical use of marijuana in the Bay State. Snow said the state needs to go further in streamlining access to medical marijuana, and to do so, regulators need to listen to patients.
For example, an annual $50 registration fee can be cost prohibitive to a disabled person living on a fixed income, although the state does allow waivers for those with financial hardships. The registration process can still be daunting. Qualifying for hospice care should be enough to qualify for medical marijuana use, Snow said.
Separate treatment
When asked about the recent passage of adult recreational use in Massachusetts, Snow said: "Our statute is completely different."
While recreational use has been legalized, sales are another matter. A sparsely attended end-of-the-year informal session of the Legislature delayed implementation of retail store sales by six months into the second half of 2018, according to news reports.
Snow said with the passage of adult use, patients are asking if they should even renew their medical marijuana registration cards, although they do need to do so to get into a medical marijuana dispensary.
Gill's story
Gill, an activist on LGBT rights who is also known as Duchess Gigi, says the measures do not go far enough to ensure safe access for patients.
He testified as both an activist and as a personal caregiver to his late partner of 31 years, describing his partner's last 10 years as "hell on Earth."
Gill said he did what he could for his partner, taking him to doctors and chemotherapy appointments, while trying to get him access to medical marijuana – when nothing else worked – to provide some relief from the pain caused by his cancer.
His partner, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1991, and which developed into full-blown AIDS, tried some marijuana to help relieve the pain and give him an appetite, and to help him sleep.
Robert J. "Jimmy" Webb died in the Kaplan Family Hospice House in Danvers on Sept. 3, 2014.
They tried to obtain a registration card, but were unsuccessful at the time, according to Gill. Without legal protections, organizations such as hospice providers face concerns about liability when it comes to providing patients with medical marijuana products, said Gill.
He is advocating the state revamp its medical marijuana laws before addressing the more lucrative adult use. Gill said there should be more dispensaries, better availability and easier access to medical products, as well as a faster response to patient applications, a process that can take up to six weeks to get a registration card.
Prices for medical marijuana also need to be reduced for those on a fixed income, he argued.
Adult use, he said, should be separated from storefront sales of marijuana, given the stigma around diseases such as AIDS.
"You need medical for private confidentiality," he said.
State Rep. Paul Tucker, D-Salem, said there is nothing in front of lawmakers yet on the medical marijuana issue, so it would be premature for him to comment.
Material from the State House News Service was used in this report.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Local Activists Advocate For Medical Marijuana Changes
Author: Ethan Forman
Contact: (978) 283-7000
Photo Credit: iStock
Website: Gloucester Times