MedicalNeed
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What's the best way to regulate medical marijuana? Put it in pharmacies, alongside other medicines. With that, many practical questions would be answered.
Federal law doesn't permit that yet, so Measure 74 provides the next best thing: a road map for Oregon to create clinics much like pharmacies to distribute medical marijuana to qualified patients.
The measure gives us the basic rules and legal structure needed, while ordering the Oregon Health Authority to design the tightest restrictions possible that allow the system to function properly. Measure 74 would also generate state revenues of $3 million to $20 million a year, much more than the cost of regulation.
In her recent column ("OK, do you really want 246 marijuana dispensaries?" Sept. 19), Susan Nielsen seemed to underestimate the powers given to the state under Measure 74. The proposal demands rules about medical marijuana zoning, inspections, record keeping, auditing, background checks of employees, security and other issues.
Measure 74 brings all stakeholders to the table to hammer out the details: law enforcement, doctors, patients and local communities, for example. Where there are concerns, such as Nielsen's, about the number of facilities, the state may decide what restrictions to impose, or may defer to local governments. The state might limit how many clinics will be permitted, for instance, or state or local restrictions may effectively limit the number.
We can look outside Oregon for examples of how not to regulate medical marijuana. California has no statewide regulation, with some cities banning suppliers, and others facing too many. (The cities where regulation is working tend not to make headlines.) Colorado saw a supply system emerge without much regulation, and state legislators have had to step in and create regulations after the fact.
New Mexico went the other direction. The Legislature authorized far too few medical marijuana dispensaries. They quickly sold out, choking off supplies for patients and sending them back to the black market.
Clearly, we need to balance supply and demand in any regulated system. We must bring medical marijuana supplies under the law, but not strangle the new system. After all, we don't limit the number of pharmacies in Oregon -- instead, we regulate them. By any measure, medical marijuana will be far more tightly restricted.
There can be no doubt that we need to act. The current system is unworkable and completely unregulated. There are now thousands of legal, medical marijuana growers across Oregon, but not a single one is ever inspected. No one pays taxes. Anyone can go into business, without background checks. The only way now to limit this activity is to arrest and prosecute people who go overboard. That's expensive, and ensures constant conflict and confusion.
All of this would change under Measure 74. Producers and suppliers would need to get licenses, pay taxes, subject themselves to inspections and have open books. Suppliers would also need to operate as not-for-profit enterprises.
Measure 74's tough rules, enforced by inspections and fines, provide a better alternative.
Measure 74 will improve the quality of life for seriously ill patients who qualify for medical use of marijuana under existing law. It removes the fear and uncertainty patients face now and will put a stop to black-market profiteers exploiting patients for financial gain.
We all share common concerns for our communities and a basic compassion for the seriously ill. Let's pass Measure 74 and agree to come together as Oregonians to make the system work.
John Sajo of Dillard and Anthony Johnson of Portland are co-authors of Measure 74, which will appear on the Nov. 2 ballot. Johnson, Jim Klahr of Milwaukie and Alice Ivany of Toledo are chief petitioners.
NewsHawk: MedicalNeed:420 MAGAZINE
Source: oregonlive.com
Author: JOHN SAJO, ANTHONY JOHNSON, JIM KLAHR and ALICE IVANY
Contact:Contact Us at OregonLive.com
Copyright: 2010 Oregon Live LLC
Website:Oregon's Measure 74: Regulation is the key for supplying medical marijuana
Federal law doesn't permit that yet, so Measure 74 provides the next best thing: a road map for Oregon to create clinics much like pharmacies to distribute medical marijuana to qualified patients.
The measure gives us the basic rules and legal structure needed, while ordering the Oregon Health Authority to design the tightest restrictions possible that allow the system to function properly. Measure 74 would also generate state revenues of $3 million to $20 million a year, much more than the cost of regulation.
In her recent column ("OK, do you really want 246 marijuana dispensaries?" Sept. 19), Susan Nielsen seemed to underestimate the powers given to the state under Measure 74. The proposal demands rules about medical marijuana zoning, inspections, record keeping, auditing, background checks of employees, security and other issues.
Measure 74 brings all stakeholders to the table to hammer out the details: law enforcement, doctors, patients and local communities, for example. Where there are concerns, such as Nielsen's, about the number of facilities, the state may decide what restrictions to impose, or may defer to local governments. The state might limit how many clinics will be permitted, for instance, or state or local restrictions may effectively limit the number.
We can look outside Oregon for examples of how not to regulate medical marijuana. California has no statewide regulation, with some cities banning suppliers, and others facing too many. (The cities where regulation is working tend not to make headlines.) Colorado saw a supply system emerge without much regulation, and state legislators have had to step in and create regulations after the fact.
New Mexico went the other direction. The Legislature authorized far too few medical marijuana dispensaries. They quickly sold out, choking off supplies for patients and sending them back to the black market.
Clearly, we need to balance supply and demand in any regulated system. We must bring medical marijuana supplies under the law, but not strangle the new system. After all, we don't limit the number of pharmacies in Oregon -- instead, we regulate them. By any measure, medical marijuana will be far more tightly restricted.
There can be no doubt that we need to act. The current system is unworkable and completely unregulated. There are now thousands of legal, medical marijuana growers across Oregon, but not a single one is ever inspected. No one pays taxes. Anyone can go into business, without background checks. The only way now to limit this activity is to arrest and prosecute people who go overboard. That's expensive, and ensures constant conflict and confusion.
All of this would change under Measure 74. Producers and suppliers would need to get licenses, pay taxes, subject themselves to inspections and have open books. Suppliers would also need to operate as not-for-profit enterprises.
Measure 74's tough rules, enforced by inspections and fines, provide a better alternative.
Measure 74 will improve the quality of life for seriously ill patients who qualify for medical use of marijuana under existing law. It removes the fear and uncertainty patients face now and will put a stop to black-market profiteers exploiting patients for financial gain.
We all share common concerns for our communities and a basic compassion for the seriously ill. Let's pass Measure 74 and agree to come together as Oregonians to make the system work.
John Sajo of Dillard and Anthony Johnson of Portland are co-authors of Measure 74, which will appear on the Nov. 2 ballot. Johnson, Jim Klahr of Milwaukie and Alice Ivany of Toledo are chief petitioners.
NewsHawk: MedicalNeed:420 MAGAZINE
Source: oregonlive.com
Author: JOHN SAJO, ANTHONY JOHNSON, JIM KLAHR and ALICE IVANY
Contact:Contact Us at OregonLive.com
Copyright: 2010 Oregon Live LLC
Website:Oregon's Measure 74: Regulation is the key for supplying medical marijuana
