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Attorney General Martha Coakley last week ruled that cities and towns can't ban marijuana dispensaries within their borders under the state's voter-approved medical marijuana law. The ruling doesn't come as a surprise from a legal standpoint – Coakley noted that such bans would, if adopted by all 351 cities and towns, prevent the "reasonable access" authorized in the new law –but it does highlight the need to introduce some sense into these breakneck proceedings.
And for the record, it is not too late to ensure that reasonable public protections are in place.
Of course the Legislature has so far blown its chance to delay the implementation of the law, ignoring Sen. John Keenan's legislation that proposed doing so.
But lawmakers could still act to adopt the sensible changes that Keenan (D-Quincy) had proposed, for example, requiring parental consent for minors seeking a marijuana "prescription," forbidding the home cultivation of pot, and requiring doctors to report recommendations for pot use to the state's prescription monitoring program. Those changes do nothing to violate the spirit of the law, but while lawmakers are busy arguing over procedural rules (see above) Keenan's bill sits in committee.
At a minimum, the Public Health Council, which will release draft regulations on March 29, must incorporate recommendations from the Massachusetts Medical Society which wants those doctors who parachute into the Bay State to be part of this new "industry" to be board-licensed, and to undergo substance abuse training.
Folks on Beacon Hill aren't usually shy about trying to legislate public health. So when there is a vital public health interest at stake as it is here, why are so many of them missing in action?
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: bostonherald.com
Author: Boston Herald Editorial Staff
Contact: Contact Us | Boston Herald
Website: Editorial: Process going to pot | Boston Herald
And for the record, it is not too late to ensure that reasonable public protections are in place.
Of course the Legislature has so far blown its chance to delay the implementation of the law, ignoring Sen. John Keenan's legislation that proposed doing so.
But lawmakers could still act to adopt the sensible changes that Keenan (D-Quincy) had proposed, for example, requiring parental consent for minors seeking a marijuana "prescription," forbidding the home cultivation of pot, and requiring doctors to report recommendations for pot use to the state's prescription monitoring program. Those changes do nothing to violate the spirit of the law, but while lawmakers are busy arguing over procedural rules (see above) Keenan's bill sits in committee.
At a minimum, the Public Health Council, which will release draft regulations on March 29, must incorporate recommendations from the Massachusetts Medical Society which wants those doctors who parachute into the Bay State to be part of this new "industry" to be board-licensed, and to undergo substance abuse training.
Folks on Beacon Hill aren't usually shy about trying to legislate public health. So when there is a vital public health interest at stake as it is here, why are so many of them missing in action?
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: bostonherald.com
Author: Boston Herald Editorial Staff
Contact: Contact Us | Boston Herald
Website: Editorial: Process going to pot | Boston Herald
