Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Arizonans said "yes" to medical marijuana. Now we can draw on the experience of more than a dozen other states to implement Proposition 203. We need a system that is more about medical needs and less about back-door legalization.
There are plenty of examples of what not to do.
Los Angeles took a head-in-the-sand approach, and hundreds of pot dispensaries popped up, even after a 2007 moratorium. Now the city is struggling to get the number under control and regulate the locations without provoking an avalanche of lawsuits.
In Montana, an advocacy group operated a mobile "cannabis caravan" and one doctor at a "cannabis convention" saw 150 people seeking authorization for medical marijuana in less than 15 hours.
Arizona is off to a better start. The vote count was just finished last week, and the election still needs to be certified before it's official. While the head of the Arizona Department of Health Services, Will Humble, strongly opposed Prop. 203, he geared up immediately to meet the April deadline for establishing a regulatory system for medical marijuana. Many local governments are also ramping up quickly and trying to anticipate the pitfalls.
To maximize safety and minimize any possible diversion of pot, the state must establish a strong database and inventory controls. There needs to be the same sort of "chain of custody" that occurs with medical testing. As a condition of issuing permits to dispensaries, Humble wants them to track plants from the cultivation facility to the patient.
Under Prop. 203, a patient can be certified to use medical marijuana to treat or alleviate a debilitating medical condition by a doctor in the course of a physician-patient relationship.
To head off pot "prescription" mills, the state needs to clarify the definition of the relationship - it can't be a single 15-minute visit. Despite supporters' claims, Prop. 203 has a giant loophole that recreational users can exploit: One of the qualifying conditions is the vague and subjective "severe and chronic pain." At the least, doctors should be required to review other options for handling pain.
As an ongoing check, both the state and professional organizations should be on the alert for doctors with unusually large numbers of pot authorizations.
Even before Prop. 203 passed, local governments had considered the zoning and permitting implications of marijuana dispensaries, growing sites and infusing facilities, which put marijuana into other products, such as teas. Some places, especially in southern Arizona, have already approved a zoning framework.
Saying no outright isn't realistic. It could lead to lawsuits and a proliferation of home cultivation. Certified patients who don't live within 25 miles of a dispensary are legally allowed to raise up to 12 plants on their own.
Zoning can control locations, such as the proximity to schools, and ensure the facilities are dispersed. Rules on bonding and security are important issues for local governments and DHS to work out.
Design review and sign ordinances can help ensure that the sites are more clinical than commercial.
Arizonans approved medical marijuana. They didn't approve a no-holds-barred free-for-all.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: azcentral.com
Author: azcentral.com
Copyright: 2010 azcentral.com
Contact: Contacting The Arizona Republic
Website: Let's put focus on medical needs
There are plenty of examples of what not to do.
Los Angeles took a head-in-the-sand approach, and hundreds of pot dispensaries popped up, even after a 2007 moratorium. Now the city is struggling to get the number under control and regulate the locations without provoking an avalanche of lawsuits.
In Montana, an advocacy group operated a mobile "cannabis caravan" and one doctor at a "cannabis convention" saw 150 people seeking authorization for medical marijuana in less than 15 hours.
Arizona is off to a better start. The vote count was just finished last week, and the election still needs to be certified before it's official. While the head of the Arizona Department of Health Services, Will Humble, strongly opposed Prop. 203, he geared up immediately to meet the April deadline for establishing a regulatory system for medical marijuana. Many local governments are also ramping up quickly and trying to anticipate the pitfalls.
To maximize safety and minimize any possible diversion of pot, the state must establish a strong database and inventory controls. There needs to be the same sort of "chain of custody" that occurs with medical testing. As a condition of issuing permits to dispensaries, Humble wants them to track plants from the cultivation facility to the patient.
Under Prop. 203, a patient can be certified to use medical marijuana to treat or alleviate a debilitating medical condition by a doctor in the course of a physician-patient relationship.
To head off pot "prescription" mills, the state needs to clarify the definition of the relationship - it can't be a single 15-minute visit. Despite supporters' claims, Prop. 203 has a giant loophole that recreational users can exploit: One of the qualifying conditions is the vague and subjective "severe and chronic pain." At the least, doctors should be required to review other options for handling pain.
As an ongoing check, both the state and professional organizations should be on the alert for doctors with unusually large numbers of pot authorizations.
Even before Prop. 203 passed, local governments had considered the zoning and permitting implications of marijuana dispensaries, growing sites and infusing facilities, which put marijuana into other products, such as teas. Some places, especially in southern Arizona, have already approved a zoning framework.
Saying no outright isn't realistic. It could lead to lawsuits and a proliferation of home cultivation. Certified patients who don't live within 25 miles of a dispensary are legally allowed to raise up to 12 plants on their own.
Zoning can control locations, such as the proximity to schools, and ensure the facilities are dispersed. Rules on bonding and security are important issues for local governments and DHS to work out.
Design review and sign ordinances can help ensure that the sites are more clinical than commercial.
Arizonans approved medical marijuana. They didn't approve a no-holds-barred free-for-all.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: azcentral.com
Author: azcentral.com
Copyright: 2010 azcentral.com
Contact: Contacting The Arizona Republic
Website: Let's put focus on medical needs
