Advocates pushing to toughen up Colorado's medical marijuana laws had something to cheer about Monday morning when Gov. Bill Ritter signed two bills that created more regulations for doctors and dispensaries.
But while the bill also gives some legitimacy to the controversial industry, not everyone involved saw it as a positive move, and talk of possible lawsuits have already cropped up.
The bills, House Bill 1284 and Senate Bill 109, put forth new licensing requirements for dispensaries and requires doctors to do a more thorough assessment of the patient before handing out a prescription for medical marijuana.
Then low-key signing, done without a major press conference and part of a slew of bills signed by the governor this morning, put into action two measures that Ritter said "will help prevent fraud and abuse", the Denver Post reported.
House Bill 1284 requires dispensaries to have both state and local licenses and lets communities ban dispensaries or large marijuana growers by order of the local government or the voters. Parts of the bill take effect July 1.
"House Bill 1284 provides a regulatory framework for dispensaries, including giving local communities the ability to ban or place sensible and much-needed controls on the operation, location and ownership of these establishments," the governor told the Longmont Times-Call.
Senate Bill 109 requires that doctors fully assess a patient's medical history and the condition for which they are seeking the prescription. They are also required to make themselves available for follow-up consultation and are banned from getting payment from dispensaries to recommend patients.
A few medical marijuana proponents blasted the signing of the bills, saying the regulations will do the exact opposite of legitimizing the industry and instead drive many dispensaries unfairly out of business and force many patients to seek medical marijuana illegally. A provision of the bill requires dispensaries to grow at least 70 percent of the medical marijuana they sell or shut down and cannot be classified as a "primary caregiver" unless they serve no more than five patients and have no more than six plants per patient.
In addition, convicted felons are barred from running a dispensary, as are people who have lived in Colorado for less than two years.
Lawyers representing dispensaries are reportedly already seeking out potential plaintiffs for a possible trial to challenge the constitutionality of the laws
Law enforcement officials are also against the bills, but for a different reason. They say the rules don't do enough to regulate the industry and, in fact, is constitutionally illegal.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Examiner.com
Author: Kenneth Green
Contact: Examiner.com
Copyright: 2010 Clarity Digital Group LLC d/b/a Examiner.com
Website: Advocates fired up after gov signs new med marijuana bills
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
But while the bill also gives some legitimacy to the controversial industry, not everyone involved saw it as a positive move, and talk of possible lawsuits have already cropped up.
The bills, House Bill 1284 and Senate Bill 109, put forth new licensing requirements for dispensaries and requires doctors to do a more thorough assessment of the patient before handing out a prescription for medical marijuana.
Then low-key signing, done without a major press conference and part of a slew of bills signed by the governor this morning, put into action two measures that Ritter said "will help prevent fraud and abuse", the Denver Post reported.
House Bill 1284 requires dispensaries to have both state and local licenses and lets communities ban dispensaries or large marijuana growers by order of the local government or the voters. Parts of the bill take effect July 1.
"House Bill 1284 provides a regulatory framework for dispensaries, including giving local communities the ability to ban or place sensible and much-needed controls on the operation, location and ownership of these establishments," the governor told the Longmont Times-Call.
Senate Bill 109 requires that doctors fully assess a patient's medical history and the condition for which they are seeking the prescription. They are also required to make themselves available for follow-up consultation and are banned from getting payment from dispensaries to recommend patients.
A few medical marijuana proponents blasted the signing of the bills, saying the regulations will do the exact opposite of legitimizing the industry and instead drive many dispensaries unfairly out of business and force many patients to seek medical marijuana illegally. A provision of the bill requires dispensaries to grow at least 70 percent of the medical marijuana they sell or shut down and cannot be classified as a "primary caregiver" unless they serve no more than five patients and have no more than six plants per patient.
In addition, convicted felons are barred from running a dispensary, as are people who have lived in Colorado for less than two years.
Lawyers representing dispensaries are reportedly already seeking out potential plaintiffs for a possible trial to challenge the constitutionality of the laws
Law enforcement officials are also against the bills, but for a different reason. They say the rules don't do enough to regulate the industry and, in fact, is constitutionally illegal.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Examiner.com
Author: Kenneth Green
Contact: Examiner.com
Copyright: 2010 Clarity Digital Group LLC d/b/a Examiner.com
Website: Advocates fired up after gov signs new med marijuana bills
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
