Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
After 11 years of working as a carpenter, Billy Miller watched the economy sour.
But after watching interest grow locally around providing marijuana to patients legally registered to use the plant for medicinal purposes in the state of Colorado, the Carbondale resident found his new calling.
The result is Aspen L.E.A.F. ( Local's Emporium for Alternative Farms ), one of two medical marijuana dispensaries to open in Aspen last week. Three other similar businesses are operating downvalley.
In a former dentist's office at the corner of Spring and Main streets, Miller, 32, and two partners in the business say this is only the beginning.
Miller said Aspen is a test case, to see what kind of business a town of 6,000 people can generate. He'd like to expand the L.E.A.F. brand to other communities in the future.
The medicinal uses of the plant are slowly becoming better understood, Miller said. It is extremely useful as an aide to chronic pain, replacing pain killers that have nasty side effects, he said.
There are also economic benefits to be reaped. Miller's business acts a "caregiver" to people who designate it as such. That means Miller can grow six marijuana plants per patient. Other growers who register as caregivers can also legally grow the plant, and then sell their product to L.E.A.F. and other dispensaries. To encourage patients to designate L.E.A.F. as their primary caregiver, Miller offers lower prices to "members." A member pays $100 for 7 grams, as opposed to $120 for cardholders who do not designate L.E.A.F. as their primary caregiver.
Miller also offers marijuana in other forms, including cooking oils ( $100 per bottle, great for salad dressings, Miller said ) and tinctures, which is a liquid extract made from the plant that is taken under the tongue in a dose of three to 10 drops under the tongue.
Miller also hopes to bring in acupuncturists and massage therapists to L.E.A.F. and one day offer classes on how to grow marijuana.
In a town where outdoor activities and manual labor have left many residents walking wounded, Miller thinks he has an audience.
At the end of June, Pitkin County was home to 42 medical marijuana patients, according to the official registry kept by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. While that may not sound like much, consider that there were fewer than three medical marijuana patients living in Pitkin County in June 2008.
Statewide, the numbers are also spiking. As of Aug. 17, there were 10,003 medical marijuana patients in Colorado. There were just 4,700 such patients at the beginning of the year. The state is expecting about 15,000 medical marijuana patients by the end of 2009.
About 90 percent of people on the registry use marijuana to alleviate symptoms of severe pain. Cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, muscle spasms and nausea are other state-approved reasons to get a medical marijuana card. Psychological ailments such as anxiety and bi-polar disorder are not currently approved by the state for medical marijuana treatment.
In the last few weeks, Miller said he has seen 15 friends obtain their medical marijuana cards and made "countless" referrals to local doctors willing to help patients get registered with the state.
To obtain medical marijuana certification, a patient must get doctor approval. The doctor then fills out a basic form and sends it in to the state, which can approve or reject the application. Processing typically takes 30 to 35 days.
It is up to the individual doctor to decide if they wish to recommend patients for medical marijuana use. Not every doctor's office will provide the recommendation.
Ron Razzore, co-owner of the Aspen Center for Cosmetic Medicine practice, will recommend medical marijuana for a patient if he believes it will be useful to them and if the patient meets the state's guidelines.
To provide the recommendation, Razzore said medical documentation of a prospective patient's chronic pain or other ailments is the surest way to go.
Razzore, who practiced family medicine for 25 years before opening the cosmetic medicine clinic, has "definitely turned some patients away" for medical marijuana, he said, although most people he's seen have had legitimate medical concerns.
I've always believed I'd rather someone smoke marijuana than take Percocet or Vicodin," Razzore said. "I'm happy the state has finally recognized that there are some benefits" to medical marijuana.
Colorado voters in 2000 amended the state constitution to legalize marijuana for certain medical purposes. The federal government still considers marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance, meaning the feds see no recognized medical use for the plant.
But a statement made in the spring by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that the federal government would cease to interfere with states that have medical marijuana programs seems to be part of the reason behind the proliferation of dispensaries in Colorado over the last six months. Another is a recent decision by the Colorado Board of Health, which declined to accept an amendment to medical marijuana rules that would limit the number of patients a caregiver could have to five. The proposed amendment was voted down in a day-long hearing in Denver in July that was attended by hundreds of medical marijuana advocates.
The state program is not free from controversy, however. Colorado Attorney General John Suthers last week called for an investigation into the high number of medical marijuana recommendations that are coming out of some doctor's offices. State records indicate that one physician, who is not identified, has issued more than 2,700 medical marijuana recommendations. Another has issued more than 1,000.
Overall, about 750 doctors have submitted medical marijuana recommendations in Colorado, but the top 15 recommending doctors have made 76 percent of all patient recommendations, according to state records.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Aspen Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2009 Aspen Daily News
Contact: Submit a Letter to the Editor | Aspen Daily News Online
Website: Aspen Daily News Online |
Author: Curtis Wackerle
But after watching interest grow locally around providing marijuana to patients legally registered to use the plant for medicinal purposes in the state of Colorado, the Carbondale resident found his new calling.
The result is Aspen L.E.A.F. ( Local's Emporium for Alternative Farms ), one of two medical marijuana dispensaries to open in Aspen last week. Three other similar businesses are operating downvalley.
In a former dentist's office at the corner of Spring and Main streets, Miller, 32, and two partners in the business say this is only the beginning.
Miller said Aspen is a test case, to see what kind of business a town of 6,000 people can generate. He'd like to expand the L.E.A.F. brand to other communities in the future.
The medicinal uses of the plant are slowly becoming better understood, Miller said. It is extremely useful as an aide to chronic pain, replacing pain killers that have nasty side effects, he said.
There are also economic benefits to be reaped. Miller's business acts a "caregiver" to people who designate it as such. That means Miller can grow six marijuana plants per patient. Other growers who register as caregivers can also legally grow the plant, and then sell their product to L.E.A.F. and other dispensaries. To encourage patients to designate L.E.A.F. as their primary caregiver, Miller offers lower prices to "members." A member pays $100 for 7 grams, as opposed to $120 for cardholders who do not designate L.E.A.F. as their primary caregiver.
Miller also offers marijuana in other forms, including cooking oils ( $100 per bottle, great for salad dressings, Miller said ) and tinctures, which is a liquid extract made from the plant that is taken under the tongue in a dose of three to 10 drops under the tongue.
Miller also hopes to bring in acupuncturists and massage therapists to L.E.A.F. and one day offer classes on how to grow marijuana.
In a town where outdoor activities and manual labor have left many residents walking wounded, Miller thinks he has an audience.
At the end of June, Pitkin County was home to 42 medical marijuana patients, according to the official registry kept by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. While that may not sound like much, consider that there were fewer than three medical marijuana patients living in Pitkin County in June 2008.
Statewide, the numbers are also spiking. As of Aug. 17, there were 10,003 medical marijuana patients in Colorado. There were just 4,700 such patients at the beginning of the year. The state is expecting about 15,000 medical marijuana patients by the end of 2009.
About 90 percent of people on the registry use marijuana to alleviate symptoms of severe pain. Cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, muscle spasms and nausea are other state-approved reasons to get a medical marijuana card. Psychological ailments such as anxiety and bi-polar disorder are not currently approved by the state for medical marijuana treatment.
In the last few weeks, Miller said he has seen 15 friends obtain their medical marijuana cards and made "countless" referrals to local doctors willing to help patients get registered with the state.
To obtain medical marijuana certification, a patient must get doctor approval. The doctor then fills out a basic form and sends it in to the state, which can approve or reject the application. Processing typically takes 30 to 35 days.
It is up to the individual doctor to decide if they wish to recommend patients for medical marijuana use. Not every doctor's office will provide the recommendation.
Ron Razzore, co-owner of the Aspen Center for Cosmetic Medicine practice, will recommend medical marijuana for a patient if he believes it will be useful to them and if the patient meets the state's guidelines.
To provide the recommendation, Razzore said medical documentation of a prospective patient's chronic pain or other ailments is the surest way to go.
Razzore, who practiced family medicine for 25 years before opening the cosmetic medicine clinic, has "definitely turned some patients away" for medical marijuana, he said, although most people he's seen have had legitimate medical concerns.
I've always believed I'd rather someone smoke marijuana than take Percocet or Vicodin," Razzore said. "I'm happy the state has finally recognized that there are some benefits" to medical marijuana.
Colorado voters in 2000 amended the state constitution to legalize marijuana for certain medical purposes. The federal government still considers marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance, meaning the feds see no recognized medical use for the plant.
But a statement made in the spring by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that the federal government would cease to interfere with states that have medical marijuana programs seems to be part of the reason behind the proliferation of dispensaries in Colorado over the last six months. Another is a recent decision by the Colorado Board of Health, which declined to accept an amendment to medical marijuana rules that would limit the number of patients a caregiver could have to five. The proposed amendment was voted down in a day-long hearing in Denver in July that was attended by hundreds of medical marijuana advocates.
The state program is not free from controversy, however. Colorado Attorney General John Suthers last week called for an investigation into the high number of medical marijuana recommendations that are coming out of some doctor's offices. State records indicate that one physician, who is not identified, has issued more than 2,700 medical marijuana recommendations. Another has issued more than 1,000.
Overall, about 750 doctors have submitted medical marijuana recommendations in Colorado, but the top 15 recommending doctors have made 76 percent of all patient recommendations, according to state records.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Aspen Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2009 Aspen Daily News
Contact: Submit a Letter to the Editor | Aspen Daily News Online
Website: Aspen Daily News Online |
Author: Curtis Wackerle
