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  USA Index   |   Resources in the USA   |
Welcome to MERCYs page on Medical Cannabis Resources in the United States of America. 

  About this page ...

This is our overview of USA related Items.   Federal information as well as state-by-state.   Status, Law, Legislation, News, Action, Resources; Forums, Organizations, Businesses, - and - Information; Links, Librarys, Gallerys, Calendars - and more.

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Thanks to Americans For Safe Access (ASA) for the map, info and all the great things they do!

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States with Active Medical Cannabis Law

Information about Medical Cannabis in Alaska Alaska
Information about Medical Cannabis in Arizona Arizona
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Information about Medical Cannabis in Colorado Colorado
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Information about Medical Cannabis in Oregon Oregon
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Information about Medical Cannabis in Washington State Washington State
Information about Medical Cannabis in Washington DC, District of Columbia (Washington) DC (District of Columbia)


States that have Legalized

Information about Medical Cannabis in Alaska Alaska
Information about Medical Cannabis in Oregon Oregon
Information about Medical Cannabis in Washington State Washington State
Information about Medical Cannabis in Washington DC, District of Columbia (Washington) DC (District of Columbia)


States with In-active, In-effective -or- Partial Medical Cannabis Law

Information about Medical Cannabis in Alabama Alabama
Information about Medical Cannabis in Florida Florida
Information about Medical Cannabis in Georgia Georgia
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Information about Medical Cannabis in Minnesota Minnesota
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Information about Medical Cannabis in North Carolina North Carolina
Information about Medical Cannabis in Oklahoma Oklahoma
Information about Medical Cannabis in South Carolina South Carolina
Information about Medical Cannabis in Tennessee Tennessee
Information about Medical Cannabis in Texas Texas
Information about Medical Cannabis in Utah Utah
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States without Medical Cannabis Law

Information about Medical Cannabis in Arkansas Arkansas
Information about Medical Cannabis in Idaho Idaho
Information about Medical Cannabis in Indiana Indiana
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Information about Medical Cannabis in Louisiana Louisiana
Information about Medical Cannabis in Nebraska Nebraska
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  Info on America and Medical Cannabis  

America - The Laws concerning marijuana Currently, cannabis (marijuana) is illegal for medicine or anything else in the United States of America, except for the seven (7) or so people who get it for medicine from the US government. Remnants of the CIND Program. Efforts are underway to change that, so that medical cannabis, at least, is available for all the people.   See below for information on federal Law, Legislation to change the law, Resources, and more.

  ACTION Items  

America - Take Action Now We in the drug reform community need to protest Obama's shameful re-appointment of Michele Leonhart as DEA chief. The retention of this Bush-era appointee is a profound disappointment to all of us who hoped that Obama would bring meaningful change to Washington. Leonhart should be replaced for having blocked the approval of a medical marijuana research garden by the University of Massachusetts, overruling the reasoned decision of DEA administrative law judge Mary Ellen Bittner. If there is one point on which both sides of the medical marijuana issue agree, it is on the need for FDA-approved supplies of medical marijuana. The DEA's opposition under Leonhart's leadership makes such development impossible.

We should protest Leonhart's appointment loudly. Although we have little hope of blocking it, there is a possibility that we can generate some pressure upon her at her confirmation hearings. This requires getting one Senator to grill her on her opposition to medical marijuana research. Looking through the membership of the Senate Judiciary Committee one deeply regrets the absence of Sen. Kennedy, who represented MA and supported the U Mass proposal. Potential supporters who might raise the issue include two senators from medical marijuana states: Chairman Patrick Leahy (VT) and Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) (my own Sen Feinstein is hopeless). Other possibilities include Russ Feingold (WI), Al Franken (MN), Arlen Specter (PA) and Dick Durbin (IL). Let's see what we can do to get one of these senators to pop the question.

America - Take Action Now ACTION; Get involved in the movement for safe and legal access to medical cannabis today. Our power comes from our collective action. Whether it's calling Congress, attending rallies, organizing a local activity or chapter, signing an online petition, or supporting federal defendants, take action today!   There are a number of medical cannabis (marijuana) bills in play in states across the US.   Here we network on Ways and Means anyone can help with the effort to make each a medical marijuana state. We need to get the word out and people contacting reps and officials and get this legislation into law. Also, lets not forget efforts at the Federal level.

United States - Action, Medical Marijuana Patients NETWORK and Spread The Word, both On-Line and Off (!)   ON-LINE, You can tell everybody in cyber-space by e-mailing a link to this website to them and/or (OFF-LINE> Send for -or- print off info and handing out where possible / necessary. Also phone call and read off and/or visit and hand deliver the info. You can take literature with you and approach businesses, organizations and even people on the street while you're out and about. Wear your pot-leaf shirt and register voters, as feasible. Gather signatures for any related petitions that are happening at the time as well. If you or your Organization is doing anything, please Post It or give us Feed Back.

United States - Resources, Meetings and Meet-Ups Meetings and Meet-Ups > Medical Cannabis Meetup Groups - Medical Cannabis Meetups around the world | Find a Medical Cannabis Meetup Group near you ... grouped by City and Country ... find the ones with the most people interested in Medical Cannabis Meetups in United States ... international, national, provincial, municipal levels   ...   Visit - http://www.meetup.com/cities/us/.

  The Law, LEGAL Info Resources  

America - Take Action Now For State By State Laws and map (This map summarizes state marijuana laws. For details click a state.) visit NORMLs web page where you can Check your state for up-to-date information on: marijuana laws and penalties, news, chapters, attorneys, arrest reports, tax stamps, drugged driving and more! Visit: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=4516

Places that have decriminalized non-medical cannabis in the United States Places that have decriminalized non-medical cannabis in the United States - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia | Multiple places have decriminalized non-medical cannabis in the United States; however, cannabis is illegal under federal law. Gonzales v. Raich (2005) held in a 6-3 decision that the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution allowed the federal government to ban the use of cannabis, including medical use even if local laws allow it. Most places that have decriminalized cannabis have civil fines, drug education, or drug treatment in place of incarceration and/or criminal charges for possession of small amounts of cannabis, or have made various cannabis offenses the lowest priority for law enforcement. Contents: Map, List of States, References, External links ... Visit - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Places_that_have_decriminalized_non-medical_cannabis_in_the_United_States

The Law - U.S. Marijuana Laws, Medical Marijuana Facts, Cannabis, Hemp U.S. Marijuana Laws, Medical Marijuana Facts, Cannabis, Hemp | Provides U.S. Marijuana Laws, Facts About Marijuana, Marijuana Drug Testing, Drug Detection Times, Medical Marijuana, and Information About Your Rights ... North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon... visit - www.usmarijuanalaws.com


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Information about Medical Cannabis in the United States of America MERCY in America; Medical Cannabis in the USA
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Alabama Alabama
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Alaska Alaska
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Arizona Arizona
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Arkansas Arkansas
  Information about Medical Cannabis in California California
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Colorado Colorado
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Connecticut Connecticut
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  Information about Medical Cannabis in Florida Florida
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Georgia Georgia
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Hawaii Hawaii
  Information about Medical Cannabis in Idaho Idaho
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  Information about Medical Cannabis in Maryland Maryland
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  Information about Medical Cannabis in Missouri Missouri
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  Information about Medical Cannabis in Nevada Nevada
  Information about Medical Cannabis in New Hampshire New Hampshire
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Information about Medical Cannabis around the World The World of MERCY; Medical Cannabis around the Globe

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Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - How to qualify as a medical marijuana patient | This resource is meant to assist patients in states with medical marijuana laws. Each states’ medical marijuana law is different, and some can be quite complex. Please read the guide for your state of residence in order to stay safe and legal. See also ASA’s section on state, federal and local statutes and case law concerning medical marijuana. Note on Affirmative Defenses - Washington If you need a court qualified cannabis expert, visit ChrisConrad.com   Learn more >> http://safeaccessnow.net/blog/physicians-and-attorneys/how-to-qualify-as-a-medical-marijuana-patient/

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Alaska | Summary | Any patient with a valid registry card may legally use marijuana for medicinal purposes and their caregiver may assist them in doing so. You can possess paraphernalia associated with growing or consuming marijuana for medical use. All patients MUST enroll in the state patient registry and possess a valid identification card in order to be legally protected. A copy of a registry identification card is not valid. A damaged card is not valid. You cannot be arrested or penalized simply for applying for a medical marijuana ID card. Access | You cannot legally purchase medical marijuana in Alaska. The only legal way to get marijuana is for you or your caregiver grow it. Caregiver | Your primary caregiver (or alternate caregiver) must be at least 21 years old, not currently on probation or parole, and can't have been convicted of a drug-related felony. They must apply with the registry to be a caregiver. And to be legally covered, they must be in physical possession of the caregiver registry identification card. They can only be the caregiver for one patient at a time Doctor | Your doctor needs to personally examine you within the last 16 months. The state of Alaska will not help you find a doctor. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_alaska

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in California | Summary | Patients and their caregivers are permitted to legally use, have, and grow cannabis for medical purposes. The law also protects not-for-profit collective and cooperative grow operations and allows primary caregivers to be reimbursed for the costs of their services. To be a legal medical cannabis patient in California, all you need is a valid doctor's recommendation. There is a medical cannabis ID card system run by the state and several privately issued patient ID cards. A state-issued ID card is not required to be a legal patient, but it does look more official to the police. If you are on probation or parole, it's up to your probation or parole officer whether or not to allow you to use medical cannabis. Access | You or your caregiver can grow your medical cannabis. Also, California's law allows for cooperative grows and dispensing businesses, as long as they are not a for-profit entity. Caregiver | Your primary caregiver must be at least 18 years old and should consistently assume responsibility for your housing, health, or safety. They can be the primary caregiver of more than one patient only if the patients live in the same city or county as the primary caregiver. Doctor | Get a written recommendation from your doctor. Here is a sample doctor's recommendation and here is the form used by San Francisco Department of Health Services. It's best to work with your primary care physician, but if they are unwilling or you don't have one, you can find a list of doctors familiar with medical cannabis at   Learn more >> xxx http://canorml.org. Under California's law, your doctor cannot be punished simply for having recommended medical cannabis.   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_california

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Colorado | Summary | Any patient with a valid registry card may legally use marijuana for medicinal purposes and their caregiver may assist them in doing so. A patient who is charged with a crime for having more medicine than the law allows may argue in court that possessing this extra medicine was medically necessary. Police are instructed not to harm or neglect any property related to medical marijuana (including plants). Any property seized must be returned as soon as the DA determines possession was for medical use. Access | You can grow medical marijuana or have your caregiver grow it. There are dispensaries in Colorado, but the state medical marijuana laws do not regulate them. Local ordinances may affect how and whether dispensaries can operate in your community. Colorado Medical   Learn more >> Marijuana.net maintains a list of dispensaries. Caregiver | A "Primary caregiver" must be at least eighteen years old and have significant responsibility for managing the well-being of a patient. The caregiver may legally grow, possess, and distribute marijuana for the patient. There is no restriction to the number of patients which one primary caregiver may serve. The caregiver's name and address will appear on the patient's registry ID. Doctor | Colorado won't help you find a doctor. Doctors cannot be punished for discussing or recommending medical marijuana to their patients.The doctor who writes your recommendation must be licensed in Colorado. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_colorado

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Florida | Summary | > Under SB 1030, a "qualified patient” is defined as "a resident of this state who has been added to the compassionate use registry by a physician licensed under chapter 458 or chapter 459 to receive low-THC cannabis from a dispensing organization." Patients must be permanent residents of the state in order for a physician to recommend low-THC cannabis to a patient in Florida. Patients under the age of 18 need two physicians to recommend low-THC cannabis before the minor patient can register with the program. The Florida Department of Health will be issuing regulations that clearly define the enrollment process, which should be issued in late 2014 or sometime in 2015. Patients are not eligible for legal protections prior to enrolling in the program. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_florida

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Hawaii | Summary | A doctor may recommend marijuana to a seriously ill patient, providing the patient with protection from criminal conviction for marijuana use under Hawaii law. Hawaii also has a registry ID card system for patients which should ordinarily prevent a patient from being arrested for marijuana use. A primary caregiver may help a medical marijuana patient cultivate and ingest their medicine. Doctor | A licensed physician may recommend marijuana. This recommendation is essential for becoming a patient in Hawaii. A recommendation from a physician's assistant will not protect you under Hawaii law. As of Jan. 1, 2015, only a patient's primary care physician may provide a valid written recommendation for medical marijuana. Access/ Caregivers | As a patient, you may cultivate marijuana. You may also designate a caregiver to assist you in cultivating marijuana. You and your caregiver are allowed to cultivate a total of up to three mature marijuana plants and four immature marijuana plants. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_hawaii

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Maine | | To qualify for legal protections in Maine, a patient must have a doctor’s certification that the patient has one of the eligible conditions specified by state law (see Eligible Conditions below). Registration with the Maine Medical Marijuana Program (MMMP) is voluntary and not necessary to have qualified status for legal protections. Patients who possess a medical marijuana registry ID card issued by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services are required to have the card with them whenever they are in possession of cannabis. State law enforcement recognizes the card as proof of patient status. Patients who are not registered must have their original physician certification form and a Maine-issued photo ID and present both to law enforcement on request.

    Caregivers are required to register with the MMMP unless the caregiver and patient live in the same household or are members of the same family. Caregivers may not have a criminal conviction and are subject to a background check. If a patient or caregiver is found in possession of more than the limit set by law, the excess cannabis must be forfeit to law enforcement, but the patient or caregiver may present the medical purpose of the cannabis as a legal defense if charged. Doctor | A licensed doctor (an MD or a DO) may recommend marijuana within the context of a bona fide physician-patient relationship. A doctor's recommendation must take the form of a written statement that in the doctor's professional opinion, "a patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of marijuana to treat or alleviate the patient's debilitating medical condition." The written recommendation must also specify which of the eligible debilitating medical condition the doctor is recommending medical marijuana for. The MMMP?physician certification form is on the DHSS website listed above. Access/ Caregivers/ Dispensaries | Caregivers must register with the State and receive an ID card before they can possess and cultivate marijuana unless they live in the same household as the patient or are a member of the same family as the patient. Caregivers may possess up to 2.5 ounces and 6 plants in an enclosed and locked facility for each patient the caregiver assists. A person cannot be a caregiver for more than 5 patients and 6 plants per patient. Caregivers may receive compensation for the costs of their services.

    Maine has a licensed system of medical cannabis dispensaries. These dispensaries must be non-profit, licensed by the state and follow a set of strict regulations. A dispensary may not give you more than 2.5 ounces of cannabis in a 15-day period. Local ordinances may also determine how dispensaries can operate near you. Patient collectives are prohibited. Patients must cultivate for themselves or designate a registered caregiver or licensed dispensary to do it for them. A registered caregiver may enlist the assistance of another registered caregiver in tending plants for up to two weeks by providing written notice to DHHS. Caregivers who are cultivating pay a registration fee of $300 per patient (up to 5) and $31 for the criminal background check. Caregivers who do not cultivate pay no registration fee.

    Out of State Patients | A visiting medical cannabis patient with an equivalent ID issued by another state is protected by Maine's medical cannabis laws. This protection is temporary so if you are a patient who plans on staying in Maine, then you must get a Maine patient ID. Under Maine law, registered patients and caregivers are protected from arrest and prosecution. If a registered patient or caregiver is prosecuted on state charges, the patient or caregiver is entitled to present an affirmative defense that the cannabis was for medical purpose. Finding a Doctor for a Recommendation | First and foremost, be forthright with your current doctor. Maine law specifies that your certifying doctor must have a bona fide physician-patient relationship with you and make a full assessment of your medical history and current condition. If you are already medicating with cannabis on your own, tell your doctor specifically what on the Maine list of qualifying conditions you treat with cannabis and how it helps you. Honestly describe the amount of cannabis you use, how often, and by what delivery method. Your doctor's recommendation must be in writing and certify that you have a qualifying debilitating medical condition that is likely to be benefit from the medical use of cannabis. You must have a bona fide physician-patient relationship with your doctor, meaning you are under that doctor's primary care or specialized care for your debilitating condition; the relationship may not be limited to writing a recommendation. Your doctor must be licensed to practice medicine in the state of Maine at the time of the recommendation. There is nothing wrong with using medical cannabis or discussing it with your doctor.

    Medical Cannabis Specialists | Before consulting a medical cannabis specialist, patients should already have medical records of diagnosis and treatment of a qualifying condition under Maine law. Be aware that: Not all doctors are qualified to make recommendations. The doctor will want to see your medical records. It can cost more than $100 to see a medical cannabis specialist; Paying the money does not guarantee that you will get a recommendation. Obtaining a Registry Identification Card | The patient registry identification card is voluntary and free. Patients who possess a medical marijuana registry ID card issued by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services are required to have the card with them whenver they are in possession of cannabis. State law enforcement recognizes the card as proof of patient status, but registration is not necessary to qualify for legal protections.

    Qualified Doctor | Your physician can only recommend medical cannabis after completing a full assessment of your medical history and current condition as part of a bona-fide physician-patient relationship. Your physician must be licensed to practice in Maine. Other licensed health professionals such as chiropractors, physician assistants and nurse practitioners cannot sign the documentation. Becoming a Legal Caregiver | Patients must cultivate for themselves or designate a registered caregiver or licensed dispensary to do it for them. Caregivers must register with the State and receive an ID card before they can possess and cultivate marijuana unless they live in the same household as the patient or are a member of the same family as the patient. Obtaining Cannabis for Qualified Patients | Patients may cultivate cannabis, designate someone to do it for them, or obtain their medicine from a licensed dispensary. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_maine

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Maryland | Becoming a Patient Under HB 881 | Rules on how to obtain a physician's written recommendation and how to apply to the Commission for a patient ID card are currently being drafted by the Commission. The most recent draft of the regulations are available here. >> Maryland Medical Marijuana Commission << Possession, Growing, and Consumption Limitations | Patients and caregivers may obtain, possess, and administer medical marijuana acquired from a licensed dispensary under the law. Patients and caregivers are not allowed to cultivate medical marijuana for the patient. The law does not impose a specific possession limit, leaving it up to the Commission to determine the possession limits for patients in the state. The only parties that may cultivation medical marijuana are those licensed by the Commission to grow medical marijuana for state-licensed dispensaries. Access to Medical Marijuana | No provision is made in Maryland's medical marijuana law for accessibility of medical marijuana to patients. This includes the absence of any mention of growing/dispensing collectives and cooperatives. Caregivers | Caregivers were added to the affirmative defense in 2013 with the passage of HB 180.

    Becoming a Patient Under the Affirmative Defense Law | On May 22, 2003 - Maryland became the ninth state to legalize the medical use of marijuana. Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. signed a bill (which went into effect on October 1, 2003), that applies to defendants possessing less than one ounce of marijuana and who can prove they used marijuana out of medical necessity and with a doctor's recommendation. Under Maryland's medical marijuana law, patients are protected from a criminal record and possible imprisonment. The maximum penalty for possession of marijuana by a patient with a valid doctor's recommendation is $100. Access to Medical Marijuana | No provision is made in Maryland's medical marijuana law for accessibility of medical marijuana to patients. This includes the absence of any mention of growing/dispensing collectives and cooperatives.

    Caregivers | Caregivers were added to the affirmative defense in 2013 with the passage of HB 180. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_maryland

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Montana | Summary | Montana issues ID cards allowing qualified patients to use marijuana legally. Patients may designate caregivers to assist them with taking and growing their medicine. Doctor | Either an MD or a DO can issue your recommendation. Access/ Caregivers/ Dispensaries | You, as a medical marijuana patient, can grow your own medicine. A registered caregiver can also help you grow your medicine. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_montana

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Nevada | Summary | To become a medical cannabis patient in Nevada, a person must be diagnosed with a chronic or debilitating condition and reside in Nevada. Patients must register with the state to receive protection from prosecution and may otherwise assert an affirmative defense in court. Registered patients may legally possess up to 2 ½ ounces in a single 14-day period, as well as cultivate up to 12 plants or designate a primary caregiver to assist them. Beginning in 2015, patients will also be able to access a state licensed distribution system. PATIENT REQUIREMENTS:

      Must be a resident of Nevada

      Must be in the care of an attending physician who is licensed in Nevada

      Must be diagnosed with a chronic or debilitating medical condition

      Must be informed by attending physician about benefits and risks of medical marijuana

      Must receive written documentation from attending physician that marijuana could mitigate diagnosis

      Must register with the State of Nevada and obtain a valid identification card*

      Must not possess more than seven plants (three mature, four immature)*

      Must not possess more than 2 ½ ounces in a single 14-day period*

      Must not drive, operate or control any vehicle or vessel while under the influence of marijuana

      Must not unlawfully possess a firearm

      Must not possess or use marijuana or related paraphernalia in public view

      Must not knowingly deliver marijuana to a person without a registration card

      Must not engage in other conduct prohibited by Nevada law

    (*) NOTE: Patients who exceed possession amounts and/or do not participate in state-run registry are subject to prosecution, but are entitled to present a medical necessity defense in court >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_nevada

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Oregon | Summary | A patient with a valid ID card may use marijuana for medicinal purposes and the patient can designate a primary caregiver to help them with their medicine. Patients may possess "paraphernalia" such as pipes, water pipes, vaporizers, in order to use their medicine. Patients must enroll in the state patient registry and possess a valid identification card in order to be legally protected. Doctor Recommendation | A doctor recommending medicinal marijuana must be a licensed physician who has primary responsibility for the care and treatment of the patient with a debilitating medical condition. Access/ Caregivers | As a patient, you may acquire your medicine by growing it yourself or by having your designated primary caregiver grow it for you. Patients may also give each other marijuana, but the law does not protect the sale of medical marijuana. Grow sites are to be registered with the Oregon Health Authority. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_oregon

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Vermont | Summary | Vermont allows patients to obtain a registry ID card if their doctor recommends marijuana for the treatment of a debilitating medical condition. With this ID a patient can legally use and cultivate marijuana for medicinal purposes. A patient can also designate a primary caregiver for assistance. Doctor | You must receive your recommendation from a doctor licensed to practice medicine and able to prescribe drugs in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts or New York. If your doctor is licensed in a state other than Vermont, the department will contact the state's medical practice board when processing the applicant's paperwork, to verify that your doctor is in good standing in that state. Access/ Caregivers | In order to obtain your medicine, you (and your caregiver) should grow marijuana in a secure indoor facility with locks. The law requires you to grow all of your medicine in a single indoor facility and the location of this facility must be specified in your patient/ caregiver application. A caregiver must also apply with the state and obtain a registry ID card. A patient may only have one caregiver at a time and a person can only be a caregiver for one patient at a time. Your caregiver must be at least 21 years old and free of convictions for drug related crimes. LEGIS > Change > The Law >> Find your elected Officials in Vermont | >>   Learn more >> xxx http://www.vermont.gov/portal/government/index.php?id=25 - Legis in VT; Findg Legis, Propg Legis (Intv?) >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_vermont

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Becoming a Patient in Washington | Summary | In order to become a medical cannabis patient in Washington, a person must suffer from a terminal or debilitating condition and reside in state at the time of diagnosis. Qualifying patients may legally possess up to 15 plants and 24 ounces with no requirement for registration. The law also allows individuals to cultivate their own medicine, designate a provider to do so or participate in collective gardens. Below you will find an overview of state requirements and links to other helpful information. PATIENT REQUIREMENTS:

      Must be diagnosed with a terminal or debilitating medical condition

      Must reside in Washington at the time of diagnosis

      Must be advised by a health care professional about the risks and benefits of medical cannabis

      Must be advised by a health care professional that they may benefit from the use of medical cannabis

      Must not possess more than 15 plants

      Must not possess more than 24 ounces of useable cannabis or a combined total of products that exceed what could be reasonably produced with 24 ounces of useable cannabis

    >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/becoming_a_patient_in_washington

Medical Cannabis in the USA; The Law -   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/state_and_federal_law

Ed your Doc! > State by State >> (1) Docs can talk! (2) - State-by-State: Recommending Cannabis | >>

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Alabama | Only UAB physicians from the Department of Neurology may write prescriptions for CBD oil under SB 174. Due to the fact that physicians cannot write prescriptions for Schedule I substances, UAB physicians will not be able to write prescriptions for CBD oil. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_alabama

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Alaska | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be physicians either be licensed to practice medicine in the state of Alaska or must be an officer in the regular medical service of the armed forces of the United States or the United States Public Health Service while in the discharge of their official duties, or while volunteering services without pay or other remuneration to a hospital, clinic, medical office, or other medical facility in Alaska. Qualify conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, or to treat any of the following symptoms that are caused by a chronic or debilitating disease, or a treatment of such disease: cachexia, severe pain, severe nausea, seizures, or persistent muscle spasms. The Department of Health and Social Services may expand this list. Forms need by physicians can be found on page 4 of this form. For more information contact Bureau of Vital Statistics at (907) 465?5423 >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_alaska

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Arizona | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be a licensed physician (MD or DO) or a licensed Naturopathic or Homeopathic physician. The law and rules specify requirements for issuing written certifications for patients for the medical use of marijuana. A physician is required to:

      Have made or confirmed a diagnosis of a debilitating medical condition, as defined in A.R.S. § 36-2801, for the qualifying patient; Have established a medical record for the qualifying patient and am maintaining the qualifying patient's medical record as required in A.R.S. § 12-2297;

      Have conducted an in-person physical examination of the qualifying patient within the last 90 calendar days appropriate to the qualifying patient's presenting symptoms and the debilitating medical condition the physician diagnosed or confirmed;

      Have reviewed the qualifying patient's medical records, including medical records from other treating physicians from the previous 12 months, the qualifying patient's responses to conventional medications and medical therapies, and the qualifying patient's profile on the Arizona Board of Pharmacy Controlled Substances Prescription Monitoring Program database;

      Have explained the potential risks and benefits of the medical use of marijuana to the qualifying patient, or if applicable, the qualifying patient's custodial parent or legal guardian;

      If the physician has referred the qualifying patient to a dispensary, have disclosed to the qualifying patient, or if applicable, the qualifying patient's custodial parent or legal guardian, any personal or professional relationship I have with the dispensary; and

      Attest that, in the physician's professional opinion, the qualifying patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the qualifying patient's medical use of marijuana to treat or alleviate the qualifying patient's debilitating medical condition

      In addition, for a patient who is under the age of 18, another physician must:

      Have conducted an comprehensive review of the qualifying patient's medical records from other physicians treating the qualifying patient;

      If the physician has referred the qualifying patient to a dispensary, have disclosed to the qualifying patient, or if applicable, the qualifying patient's custodial parent or legal guardian, any personal or professional relationship I have with the dispensary; and

      Attest that, in the physician's professional opinion, the qualifying patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the qualifying patient's medical use of marijuana to treat or alleviate the qualifying patient's debilitating medical condition.

    Qualifying Conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, Hepatitis C, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Crohn's disease, Agitation of Alzheimer's disease, A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or the treatment for a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition that causes: Cachexia or wasting syndrome, Severe and chronic pain, Severe nausea; Seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy; and Severe or persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis Forms and information for physicians can be found at http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana/physicians/   Learn more >> xxx >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_arizona

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in California | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must posses a license to practice medicine or osteopathy in California issued by the Medical Board of California or the Osteopathic Medical Board of California. This license must be in good standing and meet the following requirements.

      Take responsibility for an aspect of the medical care, treatment, diagnosis, counseling, or referral of the applicant (patient).

      Perform a medical examination of the applicant (patient).

      As a result of the medical examination, document in the patient’s medical record that the patient has a serious medical condition and that the medical use of marijuana is appropriate.

      Have the patient sign an authorized medical release of information. The county program cannot process the patient’s application without the appropriate authorization for release of medical information.

      Provide to the patient copies of the medical records stating that he or she has been diagnosed with a serious medical condition and that the medical use of marijuana is appropriate.

    Qualifying conditions include: AIDS, anorexia, cachexia, cancer, chronic pain, glaucoma, migraine, persistent muscle spasms, seizures, severe nausea, and any other serious chronic or persistent medical symptoms. Recommendation form from DPH Suggested guidelines from CMA >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_california

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Colorado | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be an MD or DO with an active Colorado medical license. Physicians with conditions or restrictions on their licenses, or out-of-state licenses, are not accepted. Physicians must have an active DEA certification. Based on Board of Health regulations, only physicians who have a bona fide physician-patient relationship with a particular patient may “certify to the state health department that the patient has a debilitating medical condition and that the patient may benefit from the use of medical marijuana.” A bona fide relationship means:

      A physician and a patient have a treatment or counseling relationship, in the course of which the physician has completed a full assessment of the patient's medical history and current medical condition, including an appropriate personal physical examination;

      The physician has consulted with the patient with respect to the patient's debilitating medical condition before the patient applies for a registry identification card; and

      The physician is available to or offers to provide follow-up care and treatment to the patient, including but not limited to patient examinations, to determine the efficacy of the use of medical marijuana as a treatment of the patient's debilitating medical condition.

    Special instructions for minors from DPHE: At times minor applications are referred for Executive Medical Director review. To facilitate the review and speed the process, the Registry recommends physicians include a treatment plan with the physician certification that includes details of follow-up care and patient oversight. For questions or more information contact CO DPHE 303-692-2184 or medical.marijuana@state.co.us. Qualify Conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, or the patient has a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition that produces one or more of the following and which, in the physician’s professional opinion, may be alleviated by the medical use of marijuana including Cachexia , Persistent muscle spasms, Seizures, Severe nausea and Severe pain. The Department of Public Health and Environment can authorize more conditions. Since the Medical Marijuana Registry Program began in 2001, no new conditions have been added. Forms for Physician Certificate More information for Physicians >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_colorado

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Connecticut | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must have an active Connecticut medical license issued by the Connecticut Department of Public Health, practice within the State of Connecticut, possess an active controlled substances registration issued by the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that is not subject to limitation, possess an active Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) controlled substance registration that is not subject to limitation and must be registered with, and able to access, the Connecticut Prescription Monitoring Program.

    Physicians must also have a bona fide relationship with a patient in order to register them with the program. A bona fide physician-patient relationship means a relationship in which the physician has ongoing responsibility for the assessment, care and treatment of a patient’s debilitating medical condition or a symptom of the patient's debilitating medical condition whereby the physician has:

      Completed a medically reasonable assessment of the patient’s medical history and current medical condition;

      Diagnosed the patient as having a debilitating medical condition;

      Prescribed, or determined it is not in the best interest to prescribe, prescription drugs to address the symptoms or effects for which the certification is being issued;

      Concluded that, in the physician’s medical opinion, the potential benefits of the palliative use of marijuana would likely outweigh the health risks to the patient; and

      Explained the potential risks and benefits of the palliative use of marijuana to the patient or, where the patient lacks legal capacity, to the parent, guardian or other person having legal custody of the patient.

    In addition, the physician should be reasonably available to provide follow-up care and treatment for the patient, including any examinations necessary to determine the efficacy of marijuana for treating the patient's debilitating medical condition, or a symptom thereof. Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, Positive Status for Human Immunodeficiency Virus or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Parkinson's Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Damage to the Nervous Tissue of the Spinal Cord with Objective Neurological Indication of Intractable Spasticity, Epilepsy, Cachexia, Wasting Syndrome, Crohn's Disease, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Conditions can be added at the discretion of the Department of Consumer Protection. Process for recommending More information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_connecticut

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Delaware | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be a physician properly licensed in the state of Delaware subject to Chapter 17 of Title 24. Only state licensed psychiatrist can recommend medical cannabis for post-traumatic stress disorder. Physicians must state that their patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of marijuana to treat or alleviate the patient's debilitating medical condition or symptoms associated with the debilitating medical condition. A written certification shall be made only in the course of a bona fide physician-patient relationship where the qualifying patient is under the physician's care for her or his primary care or for her or his debilitating medical condition after the physician has completed an assessment of the qualifying patient's medical history and current medical condition. The bona fide physician-patient relationship may not be limited to authorization for the patient to use medical marijuana or consultation for that purpose. The written certification shall specify the qualifying patient's debilitating medical condition.

    Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, decompensated cirrhosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, agitation of Alzheimer's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, or the treatment of these conditions, a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces 1 or more of the following: cachexia or wasting syndrome; severe, debilitating pain, that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measures for more than 3 months or for which other treatment options produced serious side effects; intractable nausea; seizures; or severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of multiple sclerosis and any other medical condition or its treatment added by the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. There is currently no formal form for physicians wishing to recommend cannabis to their patients. Physicians can create their own or modify this sample recommendation. For more information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_delaware

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Florida | In order to recommend low-THC medical cannabis, physicians in Florida must take a training course and enroll with the state Department of Health. To remain eligible to recommend low-THC medical cannabis, the training course must be retaken every time a physician in Florida renews their license. Physicians in Florida may only recommend low-THC medical cannabis to treat cancer, severe seizures, or severe muscle spasms. Recommending physicians must maintain a patient treatment plan that includes the dose, route of administration, planned duration, and monitoring of the patient’s symptoms and other indicators of tolerance or reaction to the low-THC cannabis. Additionally, physicians must submit quarterly reports on the progress of patients the University of Florida. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_florida

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Illinois | Physicians must be in a bona fide relationship physician-patient relationship with an ongoing expectation of care to their patient in order to be able to recommend medical cannabis under the pilot program. Physicians must undertake a complete physical examination of the patient within 90 days of filling out a certification. Complete rules for how physicians may recommend medical cannabis under the pilot program can be found in Section 946.300 of the Dept. of Public Health regulations. The certification form for physicians to use for recommending medical cannabis can be found here. The certification must be submitted by the physician, not the patient. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_illinois

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Iowa | Under SF 2360, only neurologists may recommend CBD oil, and they may only recommend it to patients are treating for intractable epilepsy. Prior to writing a recommendation for CBD oil, the patient must be receiving care from their neurologist for at least six months; however, the neurologist does not have to be licensed in Iowa, so long as they have a medical license in good standing (for example, an Iowa patient living near the border of Iowa and Illinois could be in the care of a neurologist licensed and practicing in Illinois). The neurologist must attempt to treat the patient first with alternative treatment options that have not alleviated the patient's symptoms prior to recommending CBD oil. Additionally, the neurologist must determine the risks of recommending the medical use of cannabidiol are reasonable in light of the potential benefit for the patient. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_iowa

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Kentucky | A physician practicing at a hospital or associated clinic affiliated with a Kentucky public university having a college or school of medicine may issue a written order for CBD to a patient. The law allows for such physicians to be able to issue a written order for CBD to treat any condition they think a patient can receive medical benefit from, as the law does not impose explicit list of eligible qualifying conditions. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_kentucky

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Maine | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be licensed as an osteopathic physician by the Board of Osteopathic Licensure pursuant to Title 32, chapter 36 or a person licensed as a physician or surgeon by the Board of Licensure in Medicine pursuant to Title 32, chapter 48 who is in good standing and who holds a valid federal Drug Enforcement Administration license to prescribe drugs. Recommending physicians must be able to demonstrate a bona fide physician/patient relationship that will include ongoing monitoring of patient's medical condition. The physician must also caution patients not to engage in hazardous activities while under the influence of marijuana. Conditions include Those conditions include cancer, glaucoma, ALS, crohn’s, HIV positive status, hepatitis C, agitation of Alzheimer’s disease, nail-patella syndrome, intractable pain, or a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces cachexia, severe nausea, seizures (such as those characteristic of epilepsy), PTSD or severe and persistent muscle spasms (such as those characteristic of multiple sclerosis) Physician forms can be downloaded here. For more information: Division of Licensing and Regulatory Services by phone at (207) 287-4325 or toll free at 1-855-355-4325. >>

    NH?

    DC?   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_maine

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Maryland | Natalie M. LaParade Program: Under HB 881, Maryland physicians must register with the Commission and apply for the specific qualifying medical conditions they wish to recommend for. Physician applications must include a proposal for their treatment plan, including: (1) reasons for including a patient in the program; (2) reasons to exclude a patient from the program; (3) the physician's plan for screening for drug dependence; and (4) the physician's plan for follow up care with the patient. The Commission is encouraged to approve treatment plans for the following medical conditions:

    (1) a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition that results in a patient being admitted into hospice or receiving palliative care; or

    (2) a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or the treatment of a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition that produces:

      (i) cachexia, anorexia, or wasting syndrome;

      (ii) severe or chronic pain;

      (iii) severe nausea;

      (iv) seizures; or

      (v) severe or persistent muscle spasms.

    The specific rules for physicians to follow in order to recommend medical marijuana through the program established by the Commission are currently being developed and are pending review and public comment. HB 881 requires that the Commission issue final rules by September 15, 2014. Affirmative Defense: Under Maryland's affirmative defense for possession and use of medical marijuana, there are no specific qualifying conditions, but patients must be able to show documented medical necessity, such as a written recommendation from their physician. Physicians do not need any approval from the Commission in order to recommend under the affirmative defense, but such a recommendation will not allow patients to enroll in the Commission program.

    There is no official form to fill out or special guidelines for Maryland physician to follow in order to recommend medical marijuana to a patient in order to establish an affirmative defense for that patient. Physicians can create their own forms or may base one off of this this form used by California physicians. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_maryland

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Massachusetts | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must have an active full license, with no prescribing restriction, to practice medicine in Massachusetts and a Massachusetts Controlled Substances Registration. Physicians must become a certifying physician through applying once through the Department of Public Health (DPH). A written certification shall be issued in a form and manner determined by DPH. A certifying physician issuing a written certification on or after July 1, 2014, must have completed a minimum of 2.0 Category 1 continuing professional development credits as defined in 243 CMR 2.06(6)(a)1. A certifying physician issuing a written certification shall comply with generally accepted standards of medical practice, including regulations of the Board of Registration in Medicine at 243 CMR 1.00, 2.00, and 3.00.

    A certifying physician may not delegate to any other health care professional or any other person, authority to diagnose a patient as having a debilitating medical condition. A certifying physician may issue a written certification only for a qualifying patient with whom the physician has a bona fide physician-patient relationship. Before issuing a written certification, a certifying physician must utilize the Massachusetts Prescription Monitoring Program, unless otherwise specified by the Department, to review the qualifying patient’s prescription history. A certifying physician may determine and certify that a qualifying patient requires an amount of marijuana exceeding 10 ounces as a 60-day supply and shall document the amount and the rationale in the medical record and in the written certification. For that qualifying patient, that amount of marijuana constitutes a 60-day supply.

    A qualifying patient who is under 18 years of age and has been diagnosed by two Massachusetts licensed certifying physicians, at least one of whom is a board-certified pediatrician or a board-certified pediatric subspecialist, with a debilitating life-limiting illness, may receive a written certification, provided however that the physicians may certify a qualifying patient who is under 18 years of age who has a debilitating medical condition that is not a life-limiting illness if those physicians determine that the benefits of the medical use of marijuana outweigh the risks. This must include a discussion of the potential negative impacts on neurological development with the parent or legal guardian of the qualifying patient, written consent of the parent or legal guardian, and documentation of the rationale in the medical record and the written certification. Qualifying conditions include:

      Cancer

      Glaucoma

      Positive status for human immunodeficiency virus

      Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)

      Hepatitis C

      Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

      Crohn’s disease

      Parkinson’s disease

      Multiple sclerosis

      And other conditions as determined in writing by a qualifying patient’s physician

    Official state forms are not available but physicians can base their own form off of the following California form in the interim More Information Additional Physician Guidance from DPH Physicians seeking more information can seek advisement from DPH's Guidance for Physicians Regarding the Medical Use of Marijuana (Revised – August 21, 2014). >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_massachusetts

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Michigan | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be licensed a Medical Doctor or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery fully licensed by the state of Michigan. Physicians are required to demonstrate a bona fide physician-patient relationship through:

      The physician has reviewed the patient’s relevant medical records and completed a full assessment of the patient’s medical history and current medical condition, including a relevant, in-person, medical evaluation of the patient.

      The physician has created and maintained records of the patient’s condition in accord with medically accepted standards.

      The physician has a reasonable expectation that he or she will provide follow-up care to the patient to monitor the efficacy of the use of medical marihuana as a treatment of the patient’s debilitating medical condition.

      If the patient has given permission, the physician has notified the patient’s primary care physician of the patient’s debilitating medical condition and certification for the use of medical marihuana to treat that condition.

    Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C, ALS, Crohn's disease, Alzheimer's disease, ail patella (NPS or Turner-Kiser syndrome), cachexia or wasting syndrome, severe and chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy, severe and persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis. any other medical condition approved authorized by the Department of Public Health. Physician certificate form pages 5 & 6 Statement from Board of Medicine >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_michigan

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Minnesota | The ability to recommend medical cannabis in Minnesota rest with "health care practitioners," who are defined as doctor, physician's assistant, or advanced practicing nurse who is licensed to practice in the state. The recommending health care practitioner must have primary responsibility for the care and treatment of the qualifying medical condition that the patient is being recommending medical cannabis to treat. Health care practitioners may participate in the state's registry program to collect data on patient outcomes. The Commissioner of DOH is responsible for providing notice to health care providers about the existence of the program and to provide understanding about therapeutic use of medical cannabis within program. Additional rules for health care practitioners may turn up in regulations, currently being developed by DOH, which are to finalized by January 1, 2015. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_minnesota

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Mississippi | Any physician who is licensed to practice medicine in Mississippi may issue a written order for CBD oil therapy to patients suffering with a debilitating epileptic condition or related illness. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_mississippi

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Missouri | Only neurologists who are licensed in Missouri may issue a written recommendation to a patient to threat intractable epilepsy with CBD oil. The Department of Health and Senior Services will be issuing further rules for how neurologists will assess the treatment plans of patients using CBD oil. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_missouri

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Montana | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be a physician duly licensed to practice medicine in Montana under MCA Title 37, Chapter 3. Physicians must assume primary responsibility for providing management and routine, complete a full assessment of the patient’s medical history and current condition, review all prescription and non-prescription medications and supplements used by the patient, and attest to ongoing care. Physicians are required to discuss potential harms and side effect of medical cannabis with their patient. Qualify conditions include: cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, or the treatment of these conditions, a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces: cachexia (wasting syndrome), severe or chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures (including seizures caused by epilepsy), severe or persistent muscle spasms (including spasms caused by multiple sclerosis or Crohn's disease), and any other medical condition or treatment for a medical condition adopted by the Department of Public Health and Human Services Forms can be downloaded here. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_montana

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Nevada | Medical Doctors or Doctors of Osteopathy who are currently licensed by the State of Nevada may recommend the therapeutic use of cannabis to any patient diagnosed with a chronic or debilitating medical condition. Under law, professional licensing boards are prohibited from taking disciplinary action against attending physicians who obey Nevada’s medical marijuana statute. Below is an overview of state requirements for recommending clinicians and links to other helpful information. QUALIFYING CONDITIONS:

      AIDS

      Cancer

      Glaucoma

      Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

      Cachexia (wasting and malnutrition associated with chronic disease)

      Persistent Muscle Spasms (including Multiple Sclerosis)

      Seizures (including Epilepsy)

      Severe Nausea

      Severe Pain

      Additional conditions specifically approved by the Department of Health and Human Services

    REQUIREMENTS FOR ATTENDING PHYSICIANS:

      Must be a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathy

      Must be licensed to practice medicine in Nevada

      Must be responsible for treatment of person diagnosed with chronic or debilitating condition

      Must make personal assessment of patient history and medical conditions

      Must inform patient about risks and benefits of medical marijuana

      Must have informed consent of custodial parent or legal guardian when patient is under 18

      Must sign written document stating that patient has a chronic or debilitating medical condition and that medical marijuana could mitigate the diagnosis

    Resources and Support for Attending Physicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_nevada

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in New Jersey | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must hold an active New Jersey Medical license in good standing issued by the NJ Board of Medical Examiners, possess an active controlled dangerous substances registration issued by the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs that is not subject to limitation and practice within the State of New Jersey. Physicians must have a bona fide relationship with a patient in order to register them with the program. A bona fide physician-patient relationship means a relationship in which the physician has ongoing responsibility for the assessment, care and treatment of a patient’s debilitating medical condition whereby:

      The physician-patient relationship has existed for at least one year; or

      The physician has seen and/or assessed the patient for the debilitating medical condition on at least four visits; or

      The physician assumes responsibility for providing management and care of the patient’s debilitating medical condition after conducting a comprehensive medical history and physical examination, including a personal review of the patient’s medical record maintained by other treating physicians reflecting the patient’s reaction and response to conventional medical therapies.

    Only physicians that are registered with the Medicinal Marijuana Program (MMP) can certify patients to receive medicinal marijuana. A physician must initiate a patient registration for the program. Registration can be completed online at http://njmmp.nj.gov. Qualifying conditions include: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Multiple sclerosis, Terminal cancer, Muscular dystrophy, Inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn’s disease and Terminal illness, if the physician has determined a prognosis of less than 12 months of life. Instructions on certifying a patient: http://www.state.nj.us/health/medicalmarijuana/pat_checklist.shtml >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_new_jersey

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in New Mexico | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be medical personnel licensed in New Mexico to prescribe and administer drugs that are subject to the Controlled Substance Act this includes MDs , DOs and nurse practitioners that have a primary practice in New Mexico. A practitioner must demonstrate an established patient-provider relationship that includes a current assessment of the applicant’s debilitating medical condition and an assessment of whether the potential benefits of program participation outweigh any risks. A certification requires a clinical visit. A number of qualifying conditions also require the documented support of a provider or specialist with expertise in the particular condition. Conditions with special application requirements are as follows:

      Painful peripheral neuropathy – requires inclusion of medical records that provide objective evidence of the presence of peripheral neuropathy

      PTSD – requires verification of the diagnosis by a psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner

      Glaucoma – requires the diagnosis be made by an ophthalmologist

      Severe chronic pain – requires 2 certifications. One certification must be from the applicant’s primary care provider. The second certification must be from a medical specialist with expertise in pain management or from a medical specialist with expertise in the disease process that is causing the chronic pain.

      Inflammatory auto-immune mediated arthritis – the certification must come from a board certified rheumatologist

    The Department of Health requests that when filing out Medical Certification Form, practitioners complete them with as much detail as possible including medical records supporting diagnosis, date of appointment(s), evaluations or tests used to determine the diagnosis, and past treatments. Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, Multiple Sclerosis, Epilepsy, Spinal Cord Damage with Intractable Spasticity, HIV/AIDS, Painful peripheral neuropathy, Intractable nausea/vomiting, Severe anorexia/cachexia, Hepatitis C infection currently receiving antiviral treatment, Crohn's disease, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Severe Chronic Pain, Hospice Care, Inflammatory autoimmune-mediated arthritis and Cervical dystonia More information for medical professionals Forms Contact Department of Health at medical.cannabis@state.nm.us. Resources >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_new_mexico

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in New York | Health care professionals recommending medical cannabis must be licensed to do so by the State of New York. Physicians, physician’s assistants, and registered nurses have the authority to recommend medical cannabis. This section includes an overview of state requirements for recommending physicians and links to necessary forms. QUALIFYING CONDITIONS:

      Cancer

      Positive Status for HIV or AIDS

      Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease)

      Parkinson’s Disease

      Multiple Sclerosis

      Spinal Cord Injuries

      Epilepsy

      Inflammatory Bowel Disease

      Neuropathy

      Huntington’s Disease

      Cachexia or Wasting Syndrome

      Severe or Chronic Pain

      Severe Nausea

      Severe or Persistent Muscle Spasms

      Any other medical condition added by the Commissioner

    HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONER REQUIREMENTS:

      Must be licensed by New York state and practicing within the state

      Must be qualified to treat the patient’s qualifying condition

      Must complete a 2-4 hour medical cannabis course as developed by DOH

      Must consult the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program prior to issuing certification to review patient’s controlled substance history

      Must retain a copy of each patient’s certification

      Must report all certifications to DOH

      Must not knowingly issue certification to a person with (a) no medical need for it or (b) for a purpose other than the treatment of a qualifying condition as defined by law in the State of New York

    RELATED FORMS AND APPLICATIONS | The state Department of Health is tasked with regulating medical cannabis in New York, including issuance of Patient and Caregiver Registry ID Cards, registration of dispensaries and reporting by health care practitioners. Due to the recent passage of the measure, New York’s program is still under development. This section will be updated with current links once the DOH has its program up and running. Forms will most likely be located here: http://www.health.ny.gov/forms/ >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_new_york

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in North Carolina | In North Carolina, licensed neurologists who are affiliated with one of four select Universities can obtain state approval for a pilot study. Patients must be diagnosed with epilepsy that does not respond to three or more treatment options in order to participate in a pilot study. On a case-by-case basis, neurologists may authorize the use of non-psychoactive cannabis extracts acquired from another jurisdiction. Under North Carolina law, registered physicians are exempt from all criminal and civil penalties related to recommending the use of cannabis extracts. Below you will find an overview of state requirements and links to other helpful information. RECOMMENDING CLINICIANS:

      Must be board certified in Neurology

      Must be licensed to practice medicine in the State of North Carolina

      Must be registered in Intractable Epilepsy Alternative Treatment Pilot Study database

      Must be participating in a state-approved pilot study at a selected research institution

      Must be affiliated with Neurology Department at one of the following: University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, East Carolina University, Wake Forest University or Duke University

    PILOT STUDY APPROVAL | A neurologist seeking entry into the Intractable Epilepsy Alternative Treatment program must obtain approval from North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services. Along with the above requirements for recommending clinicians, neurologists must submit an application with the following information:

    a) the name of the pilot study

    b) the affiliated research institution

    c) the scientific and clinical parameters of the study

    d) the protocols established to ensure patient safety

    e) the name and address of any neurologist associated with the study

    f) any other information required to determine the safety and evidence-based nature of the study

    Helpful Resources for Recommending Physicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_north_carolina

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Oregon | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be a doctor of medicine (MD) or doctor of osteopathy (DO) licensed to practice medicine in Oregon that has a valid license to practice medicine in Oregon and has no disqualifying restrictions. Naturopaths, chiropractors and nurse practitioners cannot write recommendations. Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, Glaucoma, Agitation due to Alzheimer’s disease, HIV+/AIDS, any other medical condition or treatment for a medical condition that produces one or more of the following: Cachexia, Severe pain, Severe nausea, Seizures, including but not limited to seizures caused by epilepsy, and persistent muscle spasm, including but not limited to spasms caused by multiple sclerosis. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_oregon

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Rhode Island | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be a licensed physician in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, or Connecticut, have a practitioner-patient relationship with the qualifying patient and complete a full assessment of the patient's medical history. Physicians must Provide written certifications for qualifying patients using the Practitioner Form (see link below) Qualifying conditions include: Cancer, glaucoma, HIV/ AIDS, hepatitis C, cachexia or wasting syndrome, severe, debilitating, chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy, severe and persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis and Crohn's disease, Alzheimer's disease and any other medical condition or treatment, approved by the DOH in the future. Information for health care providers Download Form >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_rhode_island

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in South Carolina | Medical doctors and osteopathic doctors who are licensed by South Carolina’s Board of Medical Examiners may recommend the use of cannabidiol for patients with uncontrollable epilepsy that is unresponsive to standard medical treatments. Under South Carolina law, physicians acting in compliance with Julian’s law are exempt from all criminal and civil penalties for recommending the use of cannabis. Below you will find an overview of state requirements for physicians and links to other educational resources. RECOMMENDING CLINICIANS:

      Must be a Medical Doctor or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine

      Must be licensed by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners

      Nothing prohibits physicians from applying for an Investigational New Drug Permit from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

      Physicians complying with Julian’s law are not subject to arrest, prosecution, civil penalty or administrative sanction, including disciplinary action by professional licensing boards

    Helpful Resources for Recommending Clinicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_south_carolina

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Tennessee | In order to recommend cannabis in Tennessee, physicians must be affiliated with clinical research on treatment for intractable seizures that is being conducted through a University school of medicine. Recommending clinicians must supply a report to the Commissioner of Health and Tennessee’s General Assembly by January 2018 on the results of all cannabis research, including the number of patients involved, the parameters of the study and the outcomes of each participant. Below is a basic overview of state requirements and links to other educational resources. RECOMMENDING CLINICIANS

      Must be practicing at a hospital or associated clinic

      Must be affiliated with an approved University’s school of medicine

      Must be conducting clinical research on treatment for intractable seizures

      Must report findings of patient study to the Tennessee Legislature by January 2018

    Educational Resources for Recommending Clinicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_tennessee

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Utah | Licensed neurologists in Utah can legally recommend the use of hemp extract for patients with severe epilepsy that is unresponsive to three or more treatment options. Physicians must sign a sworn statement certifying that cannabis is a beneficial remedy, regularly evaluating patient response and reporting all findings to the Department of Health. Below you will find an overview of state requirements for physicians and links to other helpful information. RECOMMENDING CLINICIANS:

      • Must be board certified in Neurology

      • Must be licensed to practice medicine in Utah

      • Must keep an evaluation record, including patient’s response to hemp extract

      • Must regularly reporting patient findings to Utah’s Department of Health

    Helpful Resources for Recommending Clinicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_utah

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Vermont | Medical professionals recommending medical cannabis must be licensed under chapter 23 or chapter 33 of Title 26, and is licensed with authority to prescribe drugs under Title 26; or an individual certified as a physician’s assistant under chapter 31 of Title 26, or an individual licensed as an advanced practice registered nurse under chapter 28 of Title 26. This definition includes individuals who are professionally licensed under substantially equivalent provisions in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, or New York. The recommending health care provider must demonstrate a bona fide health care provider-patient relationship through a treating or consulting relationship of not less than six months duration, in the course of which a physician has completed a full assessment of the registered patient's medical history and current medical condition, including a personal physical examination. Qualifying conditions include: cancer, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, multiple sclerosis, or the treatment of these conditions if the disease or the treatment results in severe, persistent and intractable symptoms; or a disease, medical condition, or its treatment that is chronic, debilitating and produces severe persistent and one or more of the following intractable symptoms: cachexia or wasting syndrome, severe pain, severe nausea or seizures; and Reasonable medical efforts have been made over a reasonable amount of time without success to relieve the symptoms. Forms can be downloaded here. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_vermont

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Washington | Health care professionals recommending medical cannabis must be licensed to practice medicine in the State of Washington. Physicians, physician’s assistants, naturopaths and advanced registered nurse practitioners have the authority to recommend medical cannabis for the treatment of a wide variety of terminal and debilitating conditions. A physical condition must be conducted as appropriate and recommendations must be issued on tamper-resistant paper. There are no state registration requirements for health care professionals or their patients. HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONER REQUIREMENTS:

      Must be licensed to practice medicine in the State of Washington

      Must have a documented relationship with patient (newly initiated or existing)

      Must complete a physical exam, as appropriate based on age and condition

      Must document terminal or debilitating condition in patient’s medical record and that patient may benefit from the use of medical cannabis for noted condition

      Must inform patient of other options to treat medical condition

      Must document other attempted measures to treat patient’s medical condition that do not involve the use of cannabis

      Must not receive financial compensation of any sort from dispensaries, producers or processors of medical cannabis

      Must not offer a discount or other item of value to patients who agree to become customers of a specific dispensary, producer or processor

      Must not examine or offer to examine patients at any location where medical cannabis is produced, processed or dispensed

      Must not have a business which consists solely to authorize the use of medical cannabis

      Must not include any references to medical cannabis in business advertisements

      Must not hold an economic interest in an enterprise that dispenses, produces or processes medical cannabis

    plus, Resources and Support for Recommending Clinicians: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_washington

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Recommending Cannabis in Wisconsin | Licensed physicians in Wisconsin can obtain an investigational drug permit to dispense cannabidiol in non-psychoactive forms. Alternatively, physicians can provide a patient with official documentation that states that the individual is authorized to possess non-psychoactive forms of cannabis to treat a seizure disorder. This section includes an overview of state requirements for recommending physicians and links to necessary forms. PHYSICIANS:

      May dispense certain forms of cannabis with investigational drug permit

      May provide official documentation to patients diagnosed with seizure disorders to authorize use and possession of CBD-only cannabis

      May not authorize the use of cannabis that could produce a psychoactive effect

      May not authorize the use of cannabis as a treatment for any medical condition other than a seizure disorder

    Resources for Physicians and Patients: >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/recommending_cannabis_wisconsin

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Legal | This section provides patients, attorneys, and pro se defendants with legal resources, including information on: how to become a patient, rights and responsibilities, landmark legal decisions, how to defend a medical marijuana case, return of property, and civil issues such as employment, housing, child custody and more. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/legal In This Section: Legal Information By State & Federal Law Facing State or Federal Charges? Patient and Provider Legal Information Provider Resources and Support Return of Property Resources for Policy Makers Find an Attorney

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Legal Professionals | Overview of federal and state laws concerning medical cannabis, information on defending medical cannabis cases, and brief banks.

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Legal Information By State & Federal Law | Learn about legal information in your state and/or what is happening on the Federal level. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/state_and_federal_law

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Facing State or Federal Charges? | Unfortunately, patients, caregivers, and providers are still vulnerable to federal and state arrests, prosecutions, and incarceration. They also suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, child custody, housing, public accommodation, education and medical care. In This Section Federal Charges Questionnaire Medical Cannabis State Questionnaire Non-Medical Cannabis States Questionnaire Resources Members OnlyTake Action Now!Online StoreChapters & GroupsSpread the Word!Events State Advocacy Resources Donate Brought To You By ASA Members Have Your Logo Here! Receive Updates Sign up to recieve email updates from ASA & and to start your own online account. You will not be spamed and you can unsubscribe at any time. Your information is always kept confidential. | Resources for: Federal Charges,

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Patient and Provider Legal Information | The information found in this section and our legal support efforts are meant to educate patients, caregivers, and providers about their legal rights, what to expect if you are arrested and tips on avoiding encounters all together. The information in this section can be applied to all states whether your state has a law or not. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/patient_and_provider_legal_information

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Provider Resources and Support | ASA provides literature, trainings, and legal support to help providers stay safe and informed. | In This Section: Making the decision to be a provider Understanding State and Local Laws Patient Focused Certification Program Quality of Care Basic Legal Info for Providers >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/providers

    more Legal >

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Return of Property | In This Section:

    Create a Motion for Return of Property | The first step in the process is to fill out the Motion for Return of Property.

    File your Motion | The second step is filing the motion.

    Argue Your Motion Before a Judge | Once you have filed the motion, you will be given a date for the hearing on your motion, usually one month away.

    If your motion for return of property is granted | If your motion for return of property is granted, you will need to take the resulting court order (signed by the judge) to the law enforcement agency or court that is in possession of your medicine and/or property to request it back.

    If your motion for return of property is denied | In many cases, filing and arguing this motion will merely be the first step in the process of getting your medicine back because of resistance by the courts.

    If your property has been destroyed | If you wish to file a civil suit for the monetary value of the property destroyed, you will first need to file a Tort claim with the city or county that oversees the law enforcement agency that confiscated your property. Key medical marijuana cases that have created legally binding precedent. Note: This section includes only Federal and California case law. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/return_of_property

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Resources for Policy Makers | Welcome legislative and regulatory staff, as well as citizen lobbyists. Whether you are working on a local ordinance, implementing statewide regulations, or passing landmark Congressional legislation, the materials here will help you with your goals in creating medical cannabis programs that are focused on patient wellbeing and community safety >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/policy_shop

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Find an Attorney | Are you looking for an attorney or just need legal advice? Click on your state below to find an attorney in your area. ASA members receive discounts on legal services. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/find_an_attorney

| >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/legal

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Producers & Providers | Resources for those providing medical cannabis directly to patients, considering providing medical cannabis, and those helping individuals obtain medical cannabis. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/providers In This Section:

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Making the decision to be a provider | Medical cannabis patients and their providers are vulnerable to law enforcement raids, arrest, prosecution, and incarceration. They suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, child custody, housing, public accommodation, education and medical care. Laws protecting patients and their providers vary from state to state, and in some cases may vary from city to city or county to county. Sometimes individuals choose to break outdated laws in states that do not account for medical use or safe access. And no matter what state you are living in, medical cannabis patients and their providers are always violating federal law. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/making_the_decision_to_be_a_provider

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Understanding State and Local Laws | Authorized medical cannabis distribution may be regulated by state laws, local ordinances, or other regulations. You will have to determine what jurisdiction governs the place where you want to provide medicine, and then figure out what laws apply to you. Some jurisdictions have bans or moratoria (temporary bans) blocking the establishment of medical cannabis dispensaries. You may also encounter a 'de facto ban' - a situation in which the jurisdiction has no written policy prohibiting medical cannabis businesses, but blocks their establishment by denying business licenses, police intimidation, or other tactics. If this is the case in your community, you will need to invest some time and money up front advocating for a change in local policy. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/understanding_state_and_local_laws In This Section: Every state has varying laws and regulations for caregivers, cultivators and medical cannabis providers. This section includes an overview of state requirements and links to necessary forms and applications. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/understanding_state_and_local_laws

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Alaska Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver Patients may designate a primary caregiver (or alternate caregiver) to assist with acquiring, cultivating and using medical cannabis. A primary caregiver must be at least 21 years old, not currently on probation or parole, and can't have been convicted of a drug-related felony. They must apply with the registry to be a caregiver . And to be legally covered, they must be in physical possession of the caregiver registry identification card. They can only be the caregiver for one patient at a time unless the patients are related to them by at least the "fourth degree of kinship" (i.e. cousins). A caregiver may legally possess six marijuana plants, only three of which may be mature enough to bear usable marijuana, plus one ounce of marijuana in usable form. Violating limits can result in being barred from the program for one year. http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/VitalStats/Documents/PDFs/MedicalMarijuana.pdf | Production/Distribution: Currently Alaska law does not allow for the commercial sales or production of medical cannabis. | In This Section: Patient and Provider Legal Information,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Arizona Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: Patients may designate a caregiver to assist with acquiring, cultivating and using medical cannabis. A designated caregiver must be at least twenty-one (21) years old and cannot ever have been convicted for a violent felony, and cannot have a felony conviction for any drug related crimes that happened within the last ten (10) years unless it was a conviction that would not have happened had the Medical Marijuana Act been in place sooner. Patients and designated caregivers are permitted to cultivate cannabis only if there is no dispensary within 25 miles of the patient's home, and they have been granted permission by the state. A patient can only have one (1) designated caregiver A designated caregiver with a registry ID card can possess up to twelve (12) marijuana plants and two and one-half (2.5) ounces of usable marijuana, keeping in mind that the sum total of medicine and plants between the patient and the designated caregiver may never exceed twelve (12) cannabis plants and two and one-half (2.5) ounces of usable cannabis. For instance, if the patient has one (1) ounce of usable cannabis in her possession, and two (2) cannabis plants, the designated caregiver may not exceed one and one-half (1.5) ounces of usable cannabis and ten (10) cannabis plants.

    Patients and designated caregivers can grow cannabis indoors in an enclosed, locked space; patients and designated caregivers can cultivate cannabis outside if they comply with the law, growing the cannabis in an enclosed, locked facility: a closet, room, greenhouse, or other enclosed area equipped with locks or other security devices that permit access only by a cardholder. "Enclosed area" is defined in rule as an outdoor space surrounded by solid 10-foot walls constructed of metal, concrete, or stone that prevent any viewing of the marijuana plants, with a one-inch-thick metal gate. For more information from the AZ DHS visit: http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana/caregivers/index.htm Production/Distribution: Arizona Department of Health Services established a registration program for nonprofit dispensaries. The law allows for 124 dispensaries. For more information on the program please visit: http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana/dispensaries/index.htm

    Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in Arizona Administrative Code are as follows: C. A medical director shall: 1. Develop and provide training to the dispensary’s dispensary agents at least once every 12 months from the initial date of the dispensary’s registration certificate on the following subjects: a. Guidelines for providing information to qualifying patients related to risks, benefits, and side effects associated with medical marijuana; b. Guidelines for providing support to qualifying patients related to the qualifying patient’s self-assessment of the qualifying patient’s symptoms, including a rating scale for pain, cachexia or wasting syndrome, nausea, seizures, muscle spasms, and agitation; c. Recognizing signs and symptoms of substance abuse; and d. Guidelines for refusing to provide medical marijuana to an individual who appears to be impaired or abusing medical marijuana. A.A.C. R9-17-313(C). In This Section Arizona Laws & Regulations >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/arizona_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - California Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver A primary caregiver must be at least 18 years old and should consistently assume responsibility for the housing, health, or safety of a patient. They can be the primary caregiver of more than one patient only if the patients live in the same city or county as the primary caregiver. IDs are not required in CA but are available at CA Department of Public Health. | Distribution: S.B. 420 The Medical Marijuana Program Act grants implied legal protection to the state's medicinal marijuana dispensaries. The AG upheld these legal protections. The CA Supreme Court has ruled that cities and counties have the right to ban dispensaries, which has created a patchwork of regulations around the state. | In This Section: California Local Dispensary Regulations, CA Laws & Regulations, Patient and Provider Legal Information, Sample Collective Agreement,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Colorado Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver A primary caregiver must be at least 18 years old and have significant responsibility for managing the well-being of a patient. The caregiver may legally grow, possess, and distribute marijuana for the patient. There is no restriction to the number of patients which one primary caregiver may serve. The caregiver's name and address will appear on the patient's registry ID. Colorado Department of Public Health has more information and required forms. Production/Distribution: House Bill 1284 provides a regulatory framework for dispensaries, including giving local communities the ability to ban or place controls on the operation, location and ownership of these establishments. Colorado Department of Public Health has more information and required application forms. Emergency Rules and Draft Rules for 2014: Notice of Permanent Rule Making Hearing, August 20, 2014 Public Comment Hearing September 2, 2014 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Old Supreme Court Chambers State Capitol Building 200 E. Colfax Ave., Room 220 Denver, CO 80203 Agenda for September 2, 2014 Formal Public Hearing Proposed Medical Marijuana Rules for September 2, 2014 Hearing (current draft) Proposed Retail Marijuana Rules for September 2, 2014 Hearing (current draft) In This Section: Colorado Laws & Regulations, Patient and Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/colorado_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Connecticut Producer & Provider | Caregiver: If a patient’s physician certifies the need for the patient to have a primary caregiver, the patient may register one person to act as their caregiver . A primary caregiver applicant will only be able to access the online registration system if a patient’s physician indicates a need for a primary caregiver; and the patient identifies the applicant as the person who will serve as their primary caregiver. The Department of Consumer Protection has more information and required forms. Production/Distribution: | Patients and caregivers may only purchase medical cannabis from dispensaries that are licensed by the state. The Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) will be licensing Dispensary facilities and Medical Marijuana Producers. DCP is not currently accepting applications for dispensary facilities and producers. You can check the DCP Medical Marijuana Program website for announcements about upcoming calls for producer or dispensing facility applications.

    Dispensary Facility Application (NOTE: The Department is NOT accepting dispensary applications at this time) Medical Marijuana Producer Application (NOTE: The Department is NOT accepting producer applications at this time) Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in the Regulation of Connecticut State Agencies are as follows: Dispensary technician training

    (a) Dispensary technicians shall complete initial training as determined by the dispensary facility manager of each dispensary facility. Such training shall include, but not be limited to:

    (1) On-the-job and other related education, which shall be commensurate with the tasks dispensary technicians are to perform and which shall be completed prior to the regular performance of such tasks;

    (2) Professional conduct, ethics, and state and federal statutes and regulations regarding patient confidentiality; and

    (3) Developments in the field of the medical use of marijuana.

    (b) The dispensary technician shall be registered as a dispensary technician with the department prior to the start of such training.

    (c) The dispensary facility manager shall assure the continued competency of dispensary technicians through continuing in-service training designed to supplement initial training, which shall include any guidance specified by the department.

    (d) The dispensary facility manager shall be responsible for maintaining a written record documenting the initial and continuing training of dispensary technicians, which shall contain:

    (1) The name of the person receiving the training;

    (2) The dates of the training;

    (3) A general description of the topics covered;

    (4) The name of the person supervising the training; and

    (5) The signatures of the person receiving the training and the dispensary facility manager.

    (e) When a change of dispensary facility manager occurs, the new manager shall review the training record and sign it, indicating that the new manager understands its contents.

    (f) A dispensary facility shall maintain the record documenting the dispensary technician training and make it available in accordance with section 21a-408-70 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

    Agencies Regs. § Sec. 21a-408-44. Dispensary facility employee training. Employee records

    (a) A dispensary facility shall provide to each dispensary facility employee, prior to the employee commencing work at the dispensary facility, at a minimum, training in the following:

    (1) The proper use of security measures and controls that have been adopted for the prevention of diversion, theft or loss of marijuana;

    (2) Procedures and instructions for responding to an emergency; and

    (3) State and federal statutes and regulations regarding patient confidentiality.

    (b) Each dispensary facility shall maintain and make available in accordance with section 21a-408-70 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, a training record for each dispensary facility employee. Such record shall include, at a minimum, documentation of all required training, including:

    (1) The name of the person receiving the training;

    (2) The dates of the training;

    (3) A general description of the topics covered;

    (4) The name of the person supervising the training; and

    (5) The signatures of the person receiving the training and the dispensary facility manager.

    Agencies Regs. § Sec. 21a-408-45. In This Section: Connecticut Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - DC Producer & Provider Info | Designated Caregiver: Patients are allowed to designate one person to be their “designated caregiver” to assist them with their medical cannabis therapy. Caregivers are selected when the patients fills out and submits their registration application to DOH. A caregiver must be at least 18 years-old, not have a conviction for possession or selling of a controlled substance, and may only serve one qualifying patient at any given time.

    Caregivers must be in possession of their DOH-issued registration card in order to receive legal protections when handling or transporting their patient’s medicine. Caregivers have the same legal protections that patients have, except they are strictly forbidden from consuming and of their patient’s medical cannabis. Caregivers who divert medical cannabis to a party other than their patient are subject to penalties under the District’s controlled substances act. Caregiver Application | A patient must list their caregiver on the patient application form; however, caregivers must also fill out their own application form, which is found on the DOH Medical Marijuana website. Instructions are similar to those for patient applicants, including photo and ID requirements and eligibility for reduced fees for financial hardship. Caregiver application forms are submitted with the patient's patient application form.

    Criminal Background Check All those apply to be a caregiver must submit to a criminal background check. There is a separate fee for the background check from the caregiver application fee. Instruction on how schedule a background check are found on page 2 of the caregiver application form. DC Department of Health has more information and required forms. Production/Distribution: The law establishes a medical marijuana program to "regulate the manufacture, cultivation, distribution, dispensing, purchase, delivery, sale, possession, and administration of medical marijuana and the manufacture, possession, purchase, sale, and use of paraphernalia. The Program shall be administered by the Mayor." DC Department of Health has more information and required forms.

    Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in the DCMR are as follows:

    5105.1 A person or entity wishing to become a medical marijuana certification provider shall obtain a medical marijuana certification provider permit which shall allow the holder to provide a medical marijuana training and education certification program in the District of Columbia. For purposes of this section, a "medical marijuana certification provider" shall mean any person or entity approved by the Department to conduct a medical marijuana and education training program as set forth in § 5105.2. A medical marijuana provider permit shall be valid for three (3) years.

    5105.2 A medical marijuana certification provider shall include the following subjects in its education training program; which shall be submitted to the Department for approval:

    (a) The effect medical marijuana use has on the body and behavior, especially as to driving ability, and that driving under the influence of marijuana is prohibited under the Act;

    (b) Procedures for the proper handling and dispensing of medical marijuana to qualified patients and caregivers;

    (c) Methods of recognizing and communicating with underage qualifying patients and caregivers;

    (d) Prevention techniques involving effective identification and carding procedures;

    (e) Explanation of the Legalization of Marijuana for Medical Treatment Amendment Act of 2010 and Federal law relating to marijuana and ensuring compliance with this title and District law;

    (f) Advertising, promotion, and marketing of medical marijuana; and

    (g) Security and theft prevention.

    5105.3 An application for a medical marijuana certification provider permit shall:

    (a) Be completed on a form provided by the Department;

    (b) Include a copy of the proposed training materials, curriculum, and examinations; and

    (c) Include payment of the annual fee for the entire three (3)-year permit period.

    5105.4 The Department shall make the final determination as to the qualifications of the applicant and compliance of the applicant's program with § 5105.2, and may require a meeting with the applicant prior to issuing its decision.

    5105.5 Approval of a medical marijuana training and education program shall expire after three (3) years from the date of the course obtaining approval. The applicant shall resubmit a program to the Department for approval as part of its application to renew its medical marijuana certification provider permit.

    22C DCMR § 5105. In This Section: DC Laws & Regulations, Patient and Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/dc_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Delaware Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver: Patients may designate a caregiver to assist with acquiring, and using medical cannabis. A “designated caregiver” must be 21, has not been convicted of certain felony offenses; and may assists no more than 5 patients. Delaware Department of Public Health has more information and required forms

    Production/Distribution: Delaware Health and Social Services issued a request for proposal late in 2013 to open a pilot compassion center in Delaware next year. The Department will issue a permit to the compassion center to begin growing medical marijuana on July 1, 2014. The policy change will allow medical marijuana patients in Delaware to buy medical marijuana in a state-regulated center. Compassion center regulations include tight security requirements, such as around-the-clock video monitoring, financial accounting controls, random inspections, and requiring that center employees verify that patients are registered with the state before selling them marijuana. The center will only be allowed to cultivate up to 150 marijuana plants, and keep inventory of no more than 1,500 ounces of usable marijuana at the facility. The state's lone compassion center is set to open in September 2014, just west of Wilmington. Delaware Department of Public Health has more information and required applications. | In This Section: Delaware Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/delaware_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Hawaii Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: Patients may designate a caregiver to assist with acquiring, cultivating and using medical cannabis. A designated caregiver may cultivate a total of up to three mature marijuana plants and four immature marijuana plants (NOTE: on Jan. 1, 2015, the law changes so that patients or their caregivers may grow up to 7 live marijuana plants, regardless of the stage of maturity). Primary caregivers must register with the department of public safety. Every primary caregiver can only care for one qualifying patient at any given time. | Production/Distribution: Currently Hawaii law does not allow for the commercial sales or production of medical cannabis. In This Section: Hawaii Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/hawaii_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Illinois Producer and Provider Info | Dispensing Organizations Under HB1, the state may issue up to 60 registrations to operate a dispensing organization. DFPR reserves the right to award fewer than 60 authorizations to register during the ?rst request for applications if the Division concludes that no quali?ed applications are timely received for a speci?c district or districts. After ?ling an application for Authorization to register a dispensing organization with the Division, applicant will be provided with a date and time stamped receipt issued by the Division. Fees The Application fee is $5,000. Dispensing Organization Districts Applications will be accepted for the following dispensing organization districts. Forms | Forms for licensed dispensaries and cultivation centers can be found below: Dispensary Applications Dispensary Application Dispensary Application Instructions Dispensary Principal Officer Attestation Form Dispensary Principal Officer Certification Form Dispensary Zoning Form Dispensary Criminal History Form

    Cultivation Centers Application for Permit, Construction and Operational Approval – Medical Cannabis Cultivation Center Fees The application fee to become a cultivation center is $25,000. Department of Agriculture will provide a time and date stamped receipt upon application submission. The receipt will serve as a record that the application was delivered to the Department. Additional Questions: Contact the Department of Agriculture | In This Section Illinois Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/illinois_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Maine Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: Caregivers must register with the State and receive an ID card before they can possess and cultivate marijuana unless they live in the same household as the patient or are a member of the same family as the patient. Caregivers may possess up to 2.5 ounces and 6 plants in an enclosed and locked facility for each patient the caregiver assists. A person cannot be a caregiver for more than 5 patients and 6 plants per patient. Caregivers may receive compensation for the costs of their services. Caregivers who are cultivating pay a registration fee of $300 per patient (up to 5) and $31 for the criminal background check. Caregivers who do not cultivate pay no registration fee.

    Caregivers are required to register with the MMMP unless the caregiver and patient live in the same household or are members of the same family. Caregivers may not have a criminal conviction and are subject to a background check. DHHS has more information and required forms. NOTE: Patients who have a physician’s written certification for the medical use of marijuana will not be required to register with the Department of Public Health (DPH) on January 1, 2014. DPH will not begin registering patients and caregivers until it completes development of an online registration system, at a date to be announced later in 2014. DPH will notify the public well in advance on its medical marijuana website, www.mass.gov/medicalmarijuana, when this online registration system is operational and must be used.

    Production/Distribution: Maine has a licensed system of medical cannabis dispensaries. These dispensaries must be non-profit, licensed by the state and follow a set of strict regulations. A dispensary may not give you more than 2.5 ounces of cannabis in a 15-day period. Local ordinances may also determine how dispensaries can operate near you. Patient collectives are prohibited. Patients must cultivate for themselves or designate a registered caregiver or licensed dispensary to do it for them. A registered caregiver may enlist the assistance of another registered caregiver in tending plants for up to two weeks by providing written notice to DHHS. DHHS has more information and applications. | In This Section: Maine Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Massachusetts Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver: Until the DPH medical cannabis program is implemented, qualifying patients may register their personal caregivers by sending a letter to DPH containing the patient’s and personal caregiver’s names, addresses and dates of birth. A certified mail return receipt for this letter is to be used as the registration card for the patient’s personal caregiver.

    Production/Distribution: “Registered marijuana dispensaries” will be licensed to both grow and sell medical cannabis. Most patients will obtain cannabis from one of the state’s registered marijuana dispensaries, but under limited hardship circumstances and until dispensaries are operational, patients and caregivers may cultivate up to a 60-day supply of cannabis. Dispensaries will be required to provide medicine at discounted rates for low-income residents. Homebound patients are allowed secure home delivery, and personal caregivers can pick up medicine at dispensaries on behalf of patients under their care. MA Department of Public Health has more information and application forms

    Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in the Code of Massachusetts Regulations are as follows: (H) Dispensary Agent Training. RMDs shall ensure that all dispensary agents complete training prior to performing job functions. Training shall be tailored to the roles and responsibilities of the job function of each dispensary agent, and at a minimum must include training on confidentiality, and other topics as specified by the Department. At a minimum, staff shall receive 8 hours of on-going training annually. 105 CMR 725.105(H). In This Section: Massachusetts Law & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/massachusetts_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Michigan Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: Primary caregivers may cultivate marijuana for qualifying patients and patients may grow medicine for themselves. A person can be a caregiver for up to five patients. Caregivers can also receive compensation for the costs of their services. Department of Public Health has more information and required forms Production/Distribution: Currently MI law does not allow for the commercial sales or production of medical cannabis. While a few cities in MI have passed laws allowing for distribution, such as Ann Arbor and Detroit; however, the MI Supreme Court Ruled in State vs. McQueen that dispensaries are not authorized to operate in Michigan. | In This Section: Michigan Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/michigan_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Montana Producer & Provider Info | Provider/Marijuana Infused Products Provider (MIPP): Montana has all but disbanded both the caregiver program and distribution programs and replaced them with the Provider/Marijuana Infused Products Provider (MIPP) program. Provider/MIPP fees are $50 and will not be refunded if the if the application is incomplete, denied or the card is revoked. All applications require a photocopy of a valid (not expired) Montana driver's license or state issued ID, to prove Montana residency. Change request forms do not require a copy of a driver’s license or state issued ID and do not require a fee. All provider/MIPP applicants must submit fingerprints at the time of application, and have their background check completed, before their application can be processed. Provider/MIPP applicants must be named by a registered cardholder (patient) applicant, in order to become a provider/MIPP. Provider/MIPP applicants must send at least one change request form for a patient naming the applicant as their provider, with their provider application packet. If a provider/MIPP applicant is renting or leasing the property where they are cultivating and manufacturing marijuana, they must include a notarized Landlord Permission Form with their application packet. If a registered cardholder (patient) applicant names a provider on their application and that person is not an approved provider/MIPP, the approved patient will receive a card with no named provider. If the person named is approved to be a provider/MIPP by the department, the patient will receive a new card with the approved provider listed. Registered cardholders who wish to add a provider, or make changes to their personal information must use a CRF to notify the department. Providers must use a CRF to notify the department of changes to their personal information. Registered cardholders and providers, who do not notify the department of address changes within 10 days of the change, may be revoked from the registry All forms must be signed and cannot be submitted electronically. Forms are available through the Department of Public Health In This Section: Montana Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/montana_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - | Caregiver: A designated primary caregiver is allowed to produce or posses marijuana one ounce of medicine, three mature plants, and four immature plants. Patients may one designate one caregiver at a time. A caregiver must be at least 18 years old, have significant responsibility for managing the patients well-being, and be officially designated as a primary caregiver. Applications and more information are available through DHHS. Production/Distribution: On June 12, 2013, Governor Brian Sandoval signed SB 374 into law establishing statewide medical cannabis distribution program. The law allows for the creation of up to 66 dispensaries regulated by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Applications will be available no later than April 1, 2014. More information is available through the DHHS website. | In This Section: Nevada Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - New Hampshire Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: A patient may designate a single caregiver to assist with obtaining and using medical marijuana. A designated caregiver must be at least twenty-one (21) years old and cannot have a felony drug-related conviction. A registered caregiver with a valid registry ID card may assist with up to five (5) qualifying patients. If both the caregiver and qualifying patients live more than 50 miles from an “alternative treatment center” licensed to dispense medical cannabis, the designated caregiver may assist up to nine (9) patients. Caregivers are limited to transporting medicine from licensed centers and assisting with administration. Until New Hampshire begins issuing registry ID cards, there are no legal protections for patients or caregivers. Production/Distribution: Medicine must be obtained by the patient or registered caregiver from one of four “Alternative Treatment Centers” to be licensed by the state to dispense cannabis to patients. The law requires the Department of Health to issue rules for licensing dispensing centers by January 2014 and to issue licenses to two centers by January 2015; however, regulations were not issued until mid-2014, and applications for ATC operators were not solicited until December 2014. If there are no further delays, the state should issue ATC licenses by mid-2015. | In This Section: New Hampshire Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - New Jersey Producer & Provider Info | Caregiver: New Jersey's medical cannabis laws protect patients and their primary caregivers from prosecution for cannabis law violations. By state law, a designated caregiver is allowed to possess, obtain, and provide cannabis for the patient. The caregiver is not allowed to use this cannabis for his or her personal use, nor provide this medicine to un-qualified patients. A caregiver must be at least 18 years of age and a New Jersey resident. A caregiver can be designated by the patient at any time on the MMP website. Once the caregiver is designated, the caregiver must complete the MMP application form and agree to a criminal background check. Caregivers cannot have been convicted of possession or sale of a controlled dangerous substance unless it was a federal conviction for marijuana sale or possession that was authorized by New Jersey medical cannabis law. The Department of Health has more information and required forms.

    Production/Distribution: | Registered patients must obtain their medicine from an Alternative Treatment Center (ATC) with which they are registered; patients may only purchase medicine from their registered ATC. The amount of cannabis a patient may obtain is to be indicated by the patient’s physician but may not exceed two (2) ounces in a 30-day period. ATCs must apply to the Department of Health (DOH) for permits to grow and dispense medicinal marijuana. The Compassionate Use of Medicinal Marijuana Act authorizes DOH to verify the information contained in the application and to monitor, oversee, and investigate all activities concerning each ATC seeking to operate in New Jersey. DOH has applications forms available.

    Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in the New Jersey Administrative Code are as follows:

    Alternative treatment center employee training

    (a) Each alternative treatment center shall either:

    1. Develop, implement and maintain on the premises an onsite training curriculum; or

    2. Enter into contractual relationships with outside resources capable of meeting employee, agent and volunteer training needs.

    (b) Each employee, agent or volunteer, at the time of his or her initial appointment, shall receive, as a minimum, training in the following:

    1. Professional conduct, ethics and State and Federal laws regarding patient confidentiality;

    2. Informational developments in the field of medical use of marijuana;

    3. The proper use of security measures and controls that have been adopted; and

    4. Specific procedural instructions for responding to an emergency, including a robbery or workplace violence.

    N.J. Admin. Code 8:64–9.5. | more In This Section: New Jersey Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/new_jersey_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - New Mexico Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: Caregivers are allowed to assist patients with growing their medicine as long as they follow the terms specified in the patient's application for a production license. Registered caregivers are issued cards that protect them from arrest and prosecution for the possession of medical cannabis under New Mexico law. All caregiver applicants are required to undergo background checks before they are approved. DOH website has a packet for caregivers with all needed information and forms. Production/Distribution: The production and distribution of medical cannabis is provided by Licensed Non-Profit Producers (LNPP) throughout the state. A Qualified Patient may also obtain a Personal Production License (PPL) to grow medical cannabis for personal use. The Medical Cannabis Fund was created to allow the Department to utilize fees to fund program expenses. There are 23 Licensed Non-Profit Producers (LNPP) serving the Qualified Patients of New Mexico. Each LNPP is able to grow up to 150 total mature plants and seedlings at a given time. The Dept. of Health is monitoring the availability of medical cannabis and will notify the public when the need for additional Non-Profit Producers is identified. At that time the application process will be presented. For additional information please review the Licensing Requirements. The Personal Production License (PPL) is available for Qualified Patients who wish to produce medical cannabis for personal use only. In most cases there is a $30.00 non-refundable fee required with the application. The Personal Production Application is found on DOH website.

    Training Requirements: The training requirements as set forth in the New Mexico Administrative Code are as follows:

    I. Private entity policies and procedures: The private non-profit entity shall develop, implement and maintain on the premises policies and procedures relating to the medical cannabis program, which shall at a minimum include the following:

    (1) distribution criteria for qualified patients or primary caregivers appropriate for cannabis services,to include clear identifiable photocopies of the registry identification card of every qualified patient or primarycaregiver served by the private entity;

    (2) alcohol and drug-free work place policies and procedures;

    (3) employee policies and procedures to address the following requirements: (a) job descriptions or employment contracts developed for every employee that identify duties, authority, responsibilities, qualifications and supervision; and

    (b) training materials concerning adherence to state confidentiality laws;

    (4) personnel records for each employee that include an application for employment and a record of any disciplinary action taken;

    (5) on-site training curricula, or contracts with outside resources capable of meeting employee training needs, to include, at a minimum, the following topics:

    (a) professional conduct, ethics and patient confidentiality; and

    (b) informational developments in the field of medical use of cannabis;

    (6) employee safety and security training materials provided to each employee at the time of his or her initial appointment, to include:

    (a) training in the proper use of security measures and controls that have been adopted; and

    (b) specific procedural instructions regarding how to respond to an emergency, including robbery or a violent accident;

    (7) a general written security policy, to address at a minimum:

    (a) safety and security procedures;

    (b) personal safety; and

    (c) crime prevention techniques;

    (8) training documentation prepared for each employee and statements signed by employees indicating the topics discussed (to include names and titles of presenters) and the date, time and place the employee received said training; and

    (9) a written policy regarding the right of the private entity to refuse service. 7.34.4.8(I) NMAC.

    In This Section: New Mexico Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Oregon Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers/Growers A patient may designate one caregiver and one grower when they register for the program. Grow sites are to be registered with the Oregon Health Authority. Production/Distribution: On August 14, 2013, Gov. John Kitzhaber today signed House Bill 3460, into law establishing regulations for the creation of state-licensed medical cannabis facilities. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) will be developing rules and regulations and will have oversight of the new statewide distribution system. The sections of HB 3460 that authorize the OHA to register medical marijuana facilities do not go into effect until March 1, 2014. A person responsible for a registered marijuana facility is not except from the criminal laws governing possession, delivery or production of marijuana as specified in ORS 475.309 until March 1, 2014, and then only if the facility has been registered by OHA. OHA has published information about the new program | In This Section Oregon Laws & Regulations   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Rhode Island Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: A patient may designate a primary caregiver to assists with cultivating and using medical marijuana. A primary caregiver must be at least twenty-one (21) years old and cannot have a felony drug conviction. The Department of Health may allow a person to serve as a primary caregiver if he/she was convicted solely for conduct that is permitted under the Rhode Island medical marijuana provisions. The Department may also make an exception if the caregiver is a close relative and his/her felony conviction was ten (10) or more years ago. A person can be a primary caregiver for no more than five (5) qualifying patients. A patient can only have up to two (2) primary caregivers. A primary caregiver with a registry ID card can possess up to twelve (12) marijuana plants and two and one-half (2.5) ounces of usable marijuana for each qualifying patient they are a primary caregiver for. A primary caregiver cannot have more than twenty-four (24) marijuana plants and five (5) ounces of usable marijuana no matter how many patients he or she is serving. A primary caregiver may receive reimbursement for costs associated with assisting a registered qualifying patient's medical use of marijuana. Forms can be found at the RI Department of Health's website.

    Production/Distribution: | Not-for-profit compassion centers for the distribution of medical cannabis were authorized by law in 2009. Licensing of the centers is done by the Rhode Island Department of Health. Gov. Lincoln Chafee suspended licensing of compassion centers in October 2011 in response to threats from federal prosecutors, then resumed the program in January 2012 after background checks and additional plant limits were added to the licensing requirements. There are currently 3 compassion centers licensed in RI. Please refer Inquires regarding the licensing of a compassion center to the Office of Facilities Regulation at OFR@health.ri.gov or call 401-222-2566. Applications can be found at the RI Department of Health's website. In This Section: Rhode Island Laws & Regulations,   Learn more >> xxx

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Vermont Producer & Provider Info | Caregivers: A caregiver must apply with the state and obtain a registry ID card. A patient may only have one caregiver at a time and a person can only be a caregiver for one patient at a time. A caregiver must be at least 21 years old and free of convictions for drug related crimes. A caregiver can cultivate marijuana in a secure indoor facility with locks the location of this facility must be specified in the caregiver application. Caregivers can cultivate/posses no more than two mature marijuana plants, seven immature plants, and two ounces of usable marijuana may be collectively possessed between the registered patient and the patient’s registered caregiver. A marijuana plant is considered mature when male or female flower buds are readily observed on the plant by unaided visual examination. Until this sexual differentiation has taken place, a marijuana plant will be considered immature.

    Production/Distribution: | These rules are intended to implement the provisions of Title 18 Chapter 86 Vermont’s therapeutic use of cannabis as they pertain to the registered patient’s, caregivers and the creation of four marijuana dispensaries. If any of these rules contradict the provisions of Title 18 Chapter 86, then the language in Title 18 Chapter 86 shall prevail. This program shall be referred to as the Vermont Marijuana Program (VMP). The rules include definitions of terms, and identification of debilitating medical conditions for which the use of marijuana is authorized. They also include procedures for issuing a certificate of registration to a dispensary, and registry identification cards to qualified patients, caregivers, staff of hospice providers and nursing facilities, and qualified principal officers, board members and employees of dispensaries. The VMP rules also govern confidentiality, payments of fees, and enforcement of these rules. Applications are now available. In This Section: Vermont Laws & Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/vermont_producer_provider_info

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - | Washington Laws and Regulations, Provider Legal Information >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/washington_producer_provider_info

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Patient Focused Certification Program | As states across the country have granted patients’ rights to access medical cannabis, a new industry has formed to meet these needs. Many states and localities have created regulations to govern the location, size, taxation and even the ownership and management structures of these businesses and non-profits. While these regulations are important in integrating these businesses into the local landscape they do not, for the most part address the safety of the product being sold or the distribution model providing patient access. In This Section:

    What is PFC? | PFC is the only certification based on the new quality standards for medical cannabis products & business issued by the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA).

    Standards Development | PFC certifies compliance with state and local regulations as well as AHPA and AHP standards and provides standardized industry training in collaboration with the Cannabis Training Institute.

    Professional Training | PFC industry trainings are co-produced with the Cannabis Training Institute (CTI). Such trainings are mandatory in some states such as DC, MA, NV, CT, and AZ and for businesses seeking PFC certification. Certificates are also available for individuals wanting to enter the medical cannabis industry.

    AHPA Guidelines | Standards are established guidelines which provide a system of processes, procedures, and documentation to assure medical cannabis products have the quality, strength, composition, and identity they represent to possess, and the companies that distribute them are committed to quality.

    Patient Focused Professional Credentials | Certifications and credentials offered through the Patient Focused Certification website.

    Companies | Patients Focused Certified Companies across the country.

  Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/patient_focused

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Quality of Care | This section discusses medical emergencies in the provider's workplace, how to work effectively with patients, and the Patients' Bill of Rights. Medical Emergencies | Patients in medical cannabis dispensaries suffer from a variety of medical conditions and symptoms. Staff should be ready to respond to a patient who has a medical emergency or may need professional help. In general, you should call an ambulance if a patient:

    Suffers a seizure or heart attack

    Falls down or is injured to a degree that requires medical attention

    Loses consciousness or faints

    Becomes suddenly disoriented, confused, or unresponsive

    Asks for emergency medical care

Working With Patients Effectively When working with patients on a daily basis, we can forget that these are people with illnesses and ailments, both physical and mental. Patients are coming to your facility because they need relief from their pain or other symptom. Remember, dispensing medical cannabis is a social and health service and should be patient focused. Employees at your dispensary should keep in mind the following "Patient's Rights":

    Treated with dignity and respect

    Privacy through confidentiality

    Participate as a partner

    Culturally sensitive environment

    Equitable share of social resources

    View challenges from their own perspective

    Negotiate the distribution of roles with caregivers and dispensary workers

    Collaborate in dispensary process

    Help understand time frames and know costs involved

Positive patient interaction and rapport building are essential components to a pleasant experience for your patients. Strive to have positive interactions with patients! Interactions with patients can be both verbal and non-verbal. The Medical Cannabis Patient's Bill of Rights | The Medical Cannabis Patients' Bill of Rights is designed to outline the basic rights of individuals who use cannabis pursuant to a recommendation from a physician to control symptoms of a serious or chronic medical condition. These rights can help those who provide medical cannabis to patients to ensure that they are upholding the highest possible standards. See List, Learn more >>   http://www.safeaccessnow.org/quality_of_care

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Raid Preparedness | The Raid Response Campaign only works if a community is prepared in advance; this means providers and the community alike. We developed this campaign to provide support to victims of law enforcement raids and frame the media coverage. We have orchestrated over 200 emergency Raid Response efforts, which have supported countless victims and helped frame this issue as a patients' rights issue in the media. This document is a tool for preparing for a law enforcement raid. Not every bullet point applies to every provider. Think of this as a guide to having an internal conversation with partners, managers, and staff - as opposed to a simple checklist. To sign up for raid alerts as a providor, please visit the ASA Raid Center. OPERATIONAL PREPARATION: When providing medical cannabis, there are certain principals and methods of operation that should be considered:

    Organize & protect patient, doctor, and financial data - use encryption software and off-site storage whenever possible (or in accordance with state and local laws)

    Establish and maintain your center in a legal and professional manner - pay your taxes, obey zoning laws, comply with all labor laws, etc. Failure to do so can complicate your legal situation following a raid.

    Minimize exposure by keeping inventory manageable and discussing financial obligations with any debtors or investors in advance.

    Label all medical products and related items "for medical use only"

    Have off-site location to store backup copies of patient and financial data, maybe with your lawyer

    Avoid storing any illicit drugs, weapons, pornography, or unauthorized persons on- site

    Monitor the area around centers for signs of surveillance; approach people who are suspicious. Get license plate numbers and record information about the contact

    Consider having an alternative location to continue services for qualified patients- churches, etc

    Be prepared to forward patients to centers that are still open

... LEGAL After a raid has occurred, there are certain legal steps to consider:

    Get word out to other providers about raid specifics so they can be better prepared

    Get people out of jail and offer jail support to those inside

    Plan Court support

    Develop long term legal plan and response to case(s)

    Work on defense fund

Raid Prep Information (PDF) |   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/raid_preparedness

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Basic Legal Info for Providers | Despite the passage of over 23 state laws, patients, caregivers, and providers are vulnerable to federal and state raids, arrests, prosecutions, and incarceration. They also suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, child custody, housing, public accommodation, education and medical care because of misinformation about the medical efficacy of cannabis and a lack of statutory legal protections. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/patient_and_provider_legal_information In This Section:

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Limiting Law Enforcement Encounters | The Best Law Enforcement Encounter is the One that Never Happens. Fortunately, many patients and caregivers never encounter law enforcement problems. Those that do fairly regularly report successful interactions with local and county police. Many municipalities offer strong protection to medical cannabis patients. However, even in friendly jurisdictions, patients are still being harassed and arrested for medical cannabis, even if they present a valid medical cannabis ID card. In This Section: Sensible Medical Cannabis Use, Being a Good Neighbor, Being Prepared in Advance for Successful Law Enforcement Encounters, Use Common Sense, Safe Gardening, Security Culture >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/limiting_law_enforcement_encounters

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Law Enforcement Encounters: Know Your Rights | Making the choice to participate in a medical cannabis program or to resist current laws should be done with thoughtful consideration. Following the law in your local area may not always protect you from law enforcement encounters, and the more you know about your rights, the more likely you will be to have a successful encounter with law enforcement. In This Section: Law Enforcement Encounters, Reasonable Suspicion vs. Probable Cause, Searches, Questioning, Miranda Rights, Arrest and Search Warrants, Infiltrators and Informants, Phone Calls in Jail, Taking Notes >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/law_enforcement_encounters_know_your_rights

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Demystifying the Legal System | Once you are in the legal system, there is a general a basic set up steps for everyone despite jurisdiction or agency. This section is meant to “demystify” the system so if you find yourself in jail you can know what to expect. Laws surrounding release options may vary state to state. In This Section: Getting Out of Jail, Going To Court, Court Support and Organizing During Trials >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/demystifying_the_legal_system

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Patients' Right Project | The Patients’ Rights Project (PRP) provides direct support and guidance to those using and providing medical cannabis and uses advocacy, media outreach and the courts to expand their rights. Legal patients and providers suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, child custody, housing, public accommodation, education, and medical care. Too often, patients must choose to break outdated or unworkable state laws that do not allow legal access. Furthermore, all medical cannabis patients and their providers must still violate federal law. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/patients_rights_project In This Section:

      Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - The Medical Cannabis Advocate's Training Center | ASA believes that good policy is created when those who are most affected are at the table. ASA has always been committed to demystifying political systems and providing advocates the tools they need to participate in the processes in a meaningful way. >> ?   Learn more >> xxx

      Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - State Law Implementation | ASA follows the implementation of regulations and laws in cities and states, as well as law enforcement encounters. Tracking this information enables ASA to identify the need for advocacy and impact litigation. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/state_law_implementation In This Section:

        Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - The Medical Cannabis Advocate's Training Center | ASA believes that good policy is created when those who are most affected are at the table. ASA has always been committed to demystifying political systems and providing advocates the tools they need to participate in the processes in a meaningful way. >> ?   Learn more >> xxx

        Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Medical Cannabis Think Tank & Policy Shop | ASA’s think tank helps activists analyze and improve pending laws and regulations. We analyze the legislation and propose changes that incorporate what local patients need. >>   Learn more >> Policy page

        Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Free Legal Hotline | ASA staffs a toll-free legal hotline and uses the information gathered to develop authoritative reports for elected officials and media, track trends and identify opportunities for impact litigation. If there’s one number to call when you have a medical cannabis related legal problem, it’s ASA’s legal hotline: 510-251-1856. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/legal_hotline

        Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Court Support | In This Section: | Workbook: Organizing court support >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/training_organizing_court_support

      Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Support POWs | Take a minute to write a short note on this holiday. Your comments mean the world to someone unjustly convicted and jailed for medical cannabis. You will feel great about it, and you will make someone’s day when they know you thought of them. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/support_prisoners_of_war

Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Policy Makers | Information for policy makers on drafting and implementing patient-centric medical cannabis legislation and regulations, including state-by-state guides and comparison charts.   Learn more >> Policy Shop In This Section:

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - What is the Policy Shop? | Utilizing ASA’s eleven years of experience in implementing medical cannabis laws and our “Legislating Compassion” and “Regulating Compassion” policy tools, ASA staff offer patient advocates and policy makers legislative and regulatory analysis, amendments for legislation and regulations, strategy advice, campaign development and support, and targeted lobbying materials. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/what_is_the_policy_shop

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Reports | ASA conducts and compiles research on issues affecting medical cannabis patients across the country. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/asa_reports

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Legislating Compassion: State by State Comparison | In the early days of the national movement for medical cannabis, advocates focused on the criminal justice aspects of the issue. Protecting patients and cultivators from arrest and prosecution was, out of necessity, an almost singular priority. As medical cannabis moves into the mainstream, the range of priorities is growing to include defining functional access models, protecting patients' civil rights, ensuring quality controls, and other public health and safety issues. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/legislating_compassion

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Model Legislation | This is ASA's principles of Legislating Compassion put into legislative form. This template for state-level legislation includes criminal and civil protections for patients. It also allows for personal cultivation and a dispensing center program. Our Dream Bill! >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/model_legislation

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - Guide to Regulating Industry Standards | As states continue to introduce laws providing patients with access to medical cannabis, now more than ever patients, caregivers and health care providers are looking for a way to secure reliable, high-quality medical cannabis products. In 2011, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) began to work with the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA),the principal U.S.trade association and voice of the herbal products industry since 1982,to bring their knowledge and expertise to the medical cannabis industry. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/regulators_program_guide_for_medical_cannabis

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - AHPA Industry Standards | Founded in 1982, AHPA is the oldest of the non-profit organizations that specializes in service to the herbal industry. It is the voice of the herbal products industry and the recognized leader in representing the botanical trade. With more than 300 members, AHPA's membership represents the finest growers, processors, manufacturers, and marketers of botanical and herbal products. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/ahpa_industry_standards

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - | Pending State Legislation | Pending State Medical Marijuana Legislation. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/pending_state_legislation

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - ASA’s Analysis and Public Comment | Over the years ASA has weighed in on state and local legislation and regulations. Look in this section to see if ASA has already responded to legislative proposals in your area. >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/asa_s_analysis_and_public_comment

    Medical Cannabis in the USA; News - ASA Policy Positions | Cannabis as a Medicine | Background: Between 1840 and 1900, European and American medical journals published more than 100 articles on the therapeutic use of cannabis. In the early 1900s, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly produced whole plant cannabis extract for sale to patients whose physicians recommended it. Today, new studies are being published in peer-reviewed journals that demonstrate cannabis has medical value in treating patients with serious illnesses such as AIDS, glaucoma, cancer, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and chronic pain. The US National Library of Medicine includes more than 6,500 published scientific articles on medical applications for cannabis. Although the federal government continues to ignore the medical efficacy of cannabis, many of the isolated compounds found in the cannabis plant are being researched and used medically. In fact, Nabilone and Dronabinol, which are isolated cannabis compounds, are currently prescribed and sold for medical use in the United States. Learn more about ASA's policy position on medical marijuana >>   Learn more >> http://www.safeaccessnow.org/asa_medical_marijuana_policy_position

Children and Cannabis; News - Qualifying as a Medical Marijuana Patient | Patients must first meet several requirements before they can gain protection under state medicinal marijuana laws. These usually include obtaining a physician’s referral, state registration, and staying within the legal limits on possession amounts and use. Some states allow minors to qualify as medicinal marijuana patients, if they meet additional requirements. Patients younger than 18 years old | About a third of medical marijuana states allow minors (who would otherwise qualify to use medicinal marijuana) to register as medical marijuana patients by meeting extra requirements. These requirements usually include gaining a parent or legal guardian’s written consent and agreement to serve as the minor’s primary caregiver. In this capacity, the parent must control the minor’s marijuana supply, frequency of use, and dosage.

Effect on Minor Custody or Visitation | Most state statutes are silent on the effect medicinal marijuana use might have on parental custody or visitation. However, under Michigan law, a patient or primary caregiver cannot be denied custody or visitation of a minor child for acting in accordance with the medical marijuana laws, unless the activities can be shown to cause an unreasonable, clearly articulated, and substantiated danger to the minor. If this issue applies to you, consult an experienced family law attorney in your area to discuss how such cases are usually handled in your local courthouse.   >> www.criminaldefenselawyer.com/resources/medical-marijuana-laws.htm

Children and Cannabis; News - State Medical Marijuana Laws - Legislative News, Studies and ... | ... making the Golden State the first in the union to allow for the medical use of marijuana. ... State Medical Marijuana/Cannabis Program Laws. Recently approved efforts in a handful of states only allow "low THC, high cannabidiol (CBD)" products to be used medically in limited situations or as a legal defense. Those programs are not counted as comprehensive medical marijuana programs but are listed as passed in Table 2. ... Allowed for Minors:   >> www.ncsl.org/research/health/state-medical-marijuana-laws.aspx

  LEGISLATION, Action Items and related Resources  

America - Legislation, the Truth in Trials Act Support the Truth in Trials Act | The calls to Congress are working, and we've been getting great feedback from activists. Will you help? Step by step, Congress is learning about the Truth in Trials Act and Elected officials in general are starting to pay attention to what we are asking for. Medical marijuana patients need protection from federal prosecution. The Truth in Trials Act can help.

Will you call your Member of Congress? Here's a reminder of the basic steps:

    1. Find out who your Rep is. Go to http://www.house.gov and type in your zip code in the upper left corner. If it asks for your full "Zip+4", just look at your last piece of junk mail.

    2. Dial 202-224-3121. Ask the operator to transfer you to your Member of Congress.

    3. Tell your Rep ... "I'm calling from ______ and I want you to cosponsor HR 3939, the Truth in Trials Act."

    4. Contact other people and groups, and network the points and counter-points discussed with the legislator you called.

Thanks!

America - Drug Policy Alliance, State Organizing and Policy Project  Drug Policy Alliance: State Organizing and Policy Project | The State Organizing and Policy Project of the Drug Policy Alliance combines research-driven advocacy with community-based organizing strategies to win drug policy reforms. The Project’s focus states are currently Alabama, Connecticut, and United States, and various cities and counties within each of these states. The Project is charged with advancing DPA's mission and vision through organizing for policy reform; provoking, instigating, and inspiring vigorous public debates about the failures of the drug war; promoting sensible, effective alternatives; and building a movement to end the war on drugs. We do this by working with grassroots organizers and activists, local organizations, advocates and other key stakeholders to build strategic drug policy reform campaigns. By partnering with state-based groups, we can regionalize strong advocacy and organizing networks capable of winning long-term policy change. With our state partners, we are building a movement for drug policies based in health, human rights, reason, compassion, and justice. Visit - http://www.drugpolicy.org/about/stateoffices/sopp/

Oklahoma - Medical Marijuana Patients NORML / A Page Just For You / Medical Marijuana Patients | This section is to help you locate the information you need to become fully informed regarding medical marijuana -- as well as play an important role in changing America’s misguided marijuana laws. Select One, All States and Canada, Mexico, Europe, Other ... visit: http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=4482

USA - Medical Marijuana Patients DrugInfo - Medical Cannabis: USA > In Search of a Viable Distribution System for Oklahoma's Medical Marijuana Program ... Medicinal Cannabis: USA Federal: Legislation, Court Decisions and Commentaries States: Legislation and Programs. Click here for more.

Businesses and other Commercial Resources Others? Will be listed here.  As we get the info. You can also check the Events and News sections to see if there are any Items posted there. Know about one yourself? Post it on the Bulletin Board, below.

  ORGANIZATIONs, pro-Medical Cannabis, National and International Section 

United States - Local Resources, Legalize Marijuana in United States Legalize Marijuana in United States | United States - Local Resources, Legalize Marijuana in United States Dedicated to the legalization of marijuana through education and action. Let your voice be heard. They are committed to educating our voters on the many benefits of marijuana. They fully support legalizing medical cannabis and decriminalization in general. Contact info: visit - www.Legal4.org

United States - Resource, Org; local Weedneedz.com | was created to serve the needs of the medical marijuana community by providing an easy to use mapping tool for finding participating physicians and dispensaries of medical marijuana at the local level. If you know of a physician, dispensary or other provider not in their database, please contact them with the information and they'll add them as soon as possible. ... visit - http://www.weedneedz.com/

United States - Resource, Org; local Above the IGNORANCE | The list below contains facts about Marijuana, un-altered FACTS. Rest assured that the people who love the hobby of smoking marijuana will fight till the end to dispel the curtain of shame the media has cast on us. Features: Membership, Research, News ... visit - http://www.abovetheignorance.org

United States - Resource, Org; local Alliance for Cannabis Therapeutics | The Alliance for Cannabis Therapeutics was founded in 1981 to reform the federal laws prohibiting medical access to marijuana. Features: History, Merchandise ... visit - http://www.marijuana-as-medicine.org/alliance.htm

United States - Resource, Org; local American Alliance for Medical Cannabis | Facts re medical marijuana (Cannabis) as medicine, laws for medicinal marijuana, patient resources, recipes. Features: Search Engine, Forum, News, Policy ... visit - http://www.letfreedomgrow.com/

United States - Resource, Org; local American Medical Marijuana Association | We are a group of volunteers working together to implement, preserve and protect the rights of medicinal cannabis patients through political activism. Our platform is based on the idea of not bargaining away people's rights. We believe that each person will have different needs, which are best determined by the patient and physician. What works well for one patient may not work for another. Features: Membership, Audio/Video, Mailing List(s), News ... visit - http://www.americanmarijuana.org/

United States - Resource, Org; local Antique Cannabis Book | Over 600 Pre-1937 Medical Cannabis Products Documented;---a Great Resource book for the Antique Cannabis Collector Features: History, Research ... visit - http://antiquecannabisbook.com/

United States - Resource, Org; local Artists Helping End Marijuana Prohibition | The International Artists for H.E.M.P. (A HEMP) will be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt foundation, a nonprofit membership organization comprised of people in the all of the arts, writing, performing, musical, visual, and athletics. It will support a change in the current laws on Cannabis/Hemp/Marijuana, through the dissemination of information about Hemp and its many medical, environmental and recreational uses, as well as the very negative social impact of the current prohibition. ... visit - http://www.ahemp.org/

United States - Resource, Org; local ASA Seniors Union | The Senior Union Website provides information for seniors about medical cannabis issues and aging. Features: Forum, Membership, Research ... visit - http://www.MedicalMarijuanaandSeniors.org

and more ... here.


United States - Resource, Org; local ... Also | DrugSense / MAPinc > Drug Policy Organizations, Links and other Resources. Find a Resource near you -or- Enter yours! ... Visit: http://www.mapinc.org/dpr.htm

USA - Americans For Safe Access (ASA) Americans For Safe Access (ASA) | Medical cannabis (medical marijuana) resources in the USA ... visit - www.safeaccessnow.org

Resources, Organizations - NORML Medical Use by State NORML - the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws | Medical Use by State. All States and Canada Mexico Europe Other ... See Map >> norml.org/marijuana/medical and more.

Resources, Organizations - ASA Medical Use ASA - Americans For Safe Access: Medical and Scientific Information about Cannabis (marijuana) >> Resources for Patients | Discover how to talk to your doctor about medical cannabis, how to become a state-authorized patient, basic science and legal rights for patients, how to safely use medical cannabis, and how to get involved with medical cannabis advocacy. Resources for Medical Professionals & Researchers | The medicinal properties of cannabis are varied given the multiplicity of physiological roles of the endocannabinoid system, a ubiquitous molecular signaling system at which compounds in cannabis have robust receptor-based actions. Here is information regarding medical marijuana practice policies and procedures in your locality, as well as scientific and practice ethics information. >> www.safeaccessnow.org/medical

Resources, Organizations - Patients Out of Time, a patient advocacy organization Patients Out of Time is a patient advocacy organization with a universal constituency. They support the rights of patients to have a legal and safe access to the therapeutic use of cannabis. The mission of their organization, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, is the education of health care professionals and the public about the therapeutic use of cannabis. Their leadership is composed of medical and nursing professionals with expertise in the clinical applications of cannabis and five of the seven patients (two wish to remain anonymous) who receive their medical cannabis from the US government. Patients Out of Time is the only national non-profit in the United States that focuses only on therapeutic cannabis issues. Visit - www.medicalcannabis.com

Resources, Organizations - Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) Marijuana Policy Project (MPP). Join the Marijuana Policy Project! State officials confirm Supreme Court decision does not impact state medical marijuana laws. Medical Marijuana Briefing Paper - 2005. Until 1937, marijuana (Cannabis sativa L.) was legal in the United States ... Hawaii enacted a medical marijuana law via its state legislature in 2000 and ... Visit: www.mpp.org/medicine.html

Resources, Organizations - DrugSense: Drug Law Reform DrugSense: Drug Law Reform ... of Justice Statistics, State Court Organization, 1998 (Washington, DC ... Cannabis in Medical Practice: A Legal, Historical and Pharmacological... Visit: www.drugsense.org

Resources, Organizations - Americans For Safe Access (ASA) American Medical Marijuana Association ... Medical Marijuana Farmacy | West Virginia. State registration program, Dept of Health and Social Services 907-465-5423. Colorado. State registration program (303) 692-2184 medical.marijuana ... visit: http://americanmarijuana.org/

Resources, Organizations - Cannabis Freedom Activist Network Cannabis Freedom Activist Network | Cannabis Freedom Activist Network's Guide To Cannabis Research is a service of Freedom Activist Network. Browse http://FreedomActivist.Net/index.html to view the complete guide to Freedom Activist Network.

Resources, Organizations - LegalJoint: Medical and Other Marijuana Links LegalJoint: Medical and Other Marijuana Links. A selection links to HIGH quality canabis web sites, related to medical or recreational mmj use. of Columbia FEDERAL Florida West Virginia Guam West Virginia Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky West Virginia ... Willie Wortel Workshop. West Virginia Medical Marijuana Institute and Cannabis Club ... visit: http://www.legaljoint.net/bust.asp

Resources, Organizations - OCBC Links Page OCBC's Links Page. Organizations Supporting Medical-cannabis Reform. Americans for Safe Access(ASA) coordinates "...a nation-wide day of action to push back DEA attempts to re-criminalize medical cannabis! ... Washington Citizens for Medical Rights, sponsored a successful medical cannabis ballot measure in November 1998. "As a result, this Initiative is now State ... Visit: www.rxcbc.org/links.html

Resources, Organizations - Excellent medical info on cannabis Excellent medical info on cannabis, Washington State's I-692 Medical Marijuana Law ... Greencross. Washington State based buyer's cooperative based in Seattle. Trailblazer in state ... Visit: www.seattlehempfest.com/links.php < for more.

Resources, Organizations - Marijuana links Marijuana links. Popular Searches: Medical Marijuana Links. Marijuana Research Links. ... about marijuana, The Washington State Medical Marijuana Act CHAPTER 69.51A RCW This is ... an activist for medical marijuana. Chronic Cannabis Use A report on ... Click > here < for more.

Resources, Organizations - Open Directory - Society: Issues: Health: Drugs: Illegal: Pro-Legalization: Marijuana: Medical Purposes Open Directory - Society: Issues: Health: Drugs: Illegal: Pro-Legalization: Marijuana: Medical Purposes ... to providing medical cannabis to those in need. Initiative 692 - Medical Marijuana - WCMR of Washington State ... use of medical cannabis in the state of Colorado. Medical Marijuana ... click > here < for more.

Organizations and other Resources Others? Will be listed here.  As we get the info. Know about one yourself? Post it on the Bulletin Board, below.

  ORGANIZATIONs, General - National and International Section 

United States - Resource, NGO; local - Grants For Single Mothers Grants For Single Mothers | Single Mom Financial Aid, Scholarship Resources, Food and Housing Programs, Parenting Advice, and more. Visit - GrantsForSingleMother.org

  FORUMs - National and International Section 

Resources - Forums, Ganja Grocer Ganja Grocer | We are your Medical Marijuana Resource Center. Learn How to Become a Legal Medical Marijuana Patient. If you live in a state with Medical Marijuana Laws, Come visit our forums today! Visit - www.ganjagrocer.com < for more.

Resources  - Forums, Chat Rooms, Message Boards CANNABIS.COM - is based in california and focused on providing the best possible resources for future and current medical marijuana patients, activists, and supporters. MessageBoard Forum. Cannabis FAQs. Image & Picture Gallery. Medical Marijuana. Vaporizer FAQ. Advertising Information ... Visit: www.cannabis.com

Resources  - Forums, Cannabis Community Coalition Cannabis Community Coalition. Forum for Medical Marijuana & Medicinal Cannabis Patients. ... visit: cannabiscom.blogspot.com < for more.

Resources - Forums, Compassionate Coalition The Compassionate Coalition's mission: To defend the rights of medical marijuana patients and care providers through education and community participation. A nonprofit grassroots organization that helps build and support local chapters nation-wide, linking them with other medical marijuana reform organizations and resources. Contact Information - Mailing Address: The Compassionate Coalition * 1500 Oliver Road, Ste-K * P.M.B. #248 * Fairfield, CA 94533-3473 * (NOTE: When sending mail to this address, please be sure to write "The Compassionate Coalition" in the address line. Thanks!) * Fax: (916)266-7455 * or Visit: www.compassionatecoalition.org/forum

Resources - Amsterdam THC Ministry
First Universal Church of Kantheism The Amsterdam THC Ministry, First Universal Church of Kantheism, is based on ancient wisdom, modern science and the enlightening and healing properties of the cannabis sacrament. Their mission includes liberating the sacred cannabis hemp plant and the minds and spirits of those who do and of those who do not revere it. May we all enjoy the rich, abundant, joyful and awakened life that is part of our natural inheritance. Visit: www.thc-ministry.net/forum

Resources - Ya-Hooka; Health and Medicinal Buyers Clubs Organizations and Compassion Clubs Ya-Hooka; Forum Jump, FAQ, Today's Posts, Links Register, Community ... and more ~ Click www.Yahooka.com for more.

Resources - Cannabis Classifieds Want Ads Welcome to the Cannabis Classifieds Want Ads. To buy cannabis for medical purposes is legal in some areas. Here you will find hundreds of medical doctors, professional growers, and prescription patients in need who want to buy cannabis legally but can't find each other. Visit: www.cannabisclassifieds.com/cannabiswant.html

  EVENTs, Calendars and related Resources  

United States - Resources, Events and Action Items United States | Global Marijuana Marches - 367 cities from all 50 states (and the District of Columbia) of the United States of America have signed up one or more years since 1999. ...   or Visit - http://cannabis.wikia.com/wiki/Portal:Global_Marijuana_March#United_States.

Calendars - ASA: Events ASA: Events | 3rd Annual Candlelight Vigil for Medical Cannabis Patients Saturday, April 22nd 2006 8 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania PhillyNORML will host it's 3rd annual ... visit - www.safeaccessnow.org/calendar.php?calid=315

Events - HempFests HempFests | Street Fairs, Festivals and Farmers Markets - Music, Food and Stuff for Sale or Barter - any opportunity for activists to booth, people to gather and businesses to vend ... like any local versions of the Seattle Hempfest ... will be listed here as we find out about them.

Events - Marches Marches | Demonstrations, Rallies and similar Action Items any situation where activists are trying to educate or draw attention to - yet another - victim and people are congregating ... like the Million Marijuana Marches ... will be listed here as we find out about them.

Organizations and other Resources Other Types? Will be listed here.  As we get the info. Know about one yourself? Got an Idea? Post it on the Bulletin Board, below.

  BIZ, and related Commercial Resources  

Marijuana Seeds: Cannabis Seeds, Medicinal Use, and more Marijuana Seeds (Horticulture, Cannabis {medical} ) | - The finest quality marijuana seeds available direct from Holland. Our Marijuana seeds ( Cannabis Seeds ) are hand checked so you get the best; We stock the most popular varieties of marijuana seeds e.g. White Widow and Northern Lights; We ship seeds worldwide, discreetly packaged in crush proof envelopes; Seeds are batch tested in Holland & have 90% plus germination rate if germinated correctly; We stock the most awarded marijuana strains such as Cannabis Cup & High Times Cup winners. Almost every variety we stock has won awards! We stock an excellent range of feminized marijuana seeds * to Contact: Visit >> Marijuana-Seeds.nl


Sensi Seeds: Cannabis Seeds, Medicinal Use, Sensi Merchandise, Hemp and more Sensi Seeds (Horticulture, Cannabis {medical} ) | Sensi Seeds, where you can discover the stories behind many different facets of this legendary seed company, from its beginnings as one man’s passion and a small collection of very special seeds to the impact that the Sensi gene bank has had on medicinal marijuana and the culture of cannabis in the Netherlands and beyond. The locations and more information about Sensi Seeds shops can be found in the Shop Locations section. Medicinal users and anyone interested in the medicinal properties of marijuana will find useful and relevant advice and background information in the Medicinal Cannabis section. Cannabis Seeds, Medicinal Use, Sensi Merchandise, Hemp and more * Contact: Sensi Seeds B.V. - P.O. BOX 10952, 1001 EZ Amsterdam, Netherlands * Tel: +31 (0)20 626 29 88 * Fax: +31 (0)20 428 41 10 * or Visit >> SensiSeeds.com


Weed Seed Shop offers regular, feminized and autoflowering cannabis seeds, free shipping and secure payment Weed Seed Shop (Horticulture, Cannabis {medical} ) | Weed Seed Shop offers regular, feminized and autoflowering cannabis seeds, free shipping and secure payment. The Weed Seed Shop collection contains the most cheap cannabis seeds available online. Only with us you can buy 5 feminized cannabis seeds for less than €15! A selection of the most affordable cannabis seeds on the internet * Contact: WSS BV - P.O. box 10952, 1001 EZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands * or Visit >> WeedSeedShop.com


Gorilla Cannabis Seed Bank Gorilla Cannabis Seed Bank | gives you the chance to benefit from its years of experience; living, working and playing in the cannabis seeds jungle. He knows what you want and will fight to the death in order to bring it to your door in a perfectly discreet, freshly sealed package. You will find that nothing is too much trouble for the Gorilla Seed Bank team; be it sourcing new cannabis seeds, keeping you informed of the progress of your order or offering you regular discounts and promotions to make sure you get the best deal anywhere. Go Gorilla Now! > Gorilla Seed Bank, PO Box 456, Weston Super Mare, Somerset, BS22 9WX, United Kingdom -or- Phone: 0208 8720 7323 -or- visit > Gorilla Cannabis Seed Bank on-line.


Buy Dutch Marijuana Seeds Buy Dutch Seeds (Horticulture, Cannabis {medical} ) | Buy Dutch Marijuana Seeds High Quality Dutch Cannabis Seeds (Marijuana Seeds) delivered stealth packaged World-wide > High Dutch Cannabis Marijuana seeds from the worlds best seed supplier. Superior quality cannabis seeds from Amsterdam. High germination success, hundreds of different varieties from only the best breeders. Top smoking marijuana for our customers is the highest priority! They´ll help you personally to succeed . Note, WARNING - check your countrys laws, some will intercept the package and charge you with a crime.

They offer you the biggest list of seeds directly from top Dutch Cannabis breeders. Over 30 cannabis strains. Lots of Cannabis Cup winners like White Widow, Durban Poison and Northern Lights. We provide marijuana seeds for every need: Indoor, Outdoor, feminized, and medical. Discretion and SAFE shopping is guaranteed, SSL Secured. Discrete delivery worldwide! All seed-packages contain 10 seeds, they ship all seeds by Priority mail in plain packaging crush proof sealed envelops with no indication to the contents. | Contact: Postbus 938 . 5600 AX Eindhoven . The Netherlands * or ... Visit: https://www.buydutchseeds.com/


Businesses and other Commercial Resources Cannabis Worm Tea | Mycorrhizae inoculation is finally becoming mainstream with dedicated growers. Use it once, you'll never grow without it again. When you use CannabisWormTea you get so much more satisfaction. Shop and compare ... Stop wasting money. If you want to purchase just the Pure Endo Mychorrhizae for a one time inoculation ... Good Call ... One inoculation is all you need for the plants entire life cycle. Learn more about Cannabis Worm Tea CannabisWormTea kits have continuous Mycorrhizae fungi feeds as a huge dose is included in every kit and refill. Just add the Liquid Force inoculator to the Worm Tea base. You'll love the results! Other Organic compounds included in the kit are derived from Fish bone meal, alfalfa meal, seaweed extract, kelp meal, feather meal soft rock phosphate, dolomite limes ... a pH adjuster Our Grow formula has a NPK of no More than 12.3.1 Our Bloom formula has a NPK of no More than 4.10.7 CannabisWormTea is highly effective and fast acting! Bottom line is CannabisWormTea is the stuff you want to use on your plants! If you work with alot of plants you can put the worm tea concentrate right on the root base. Then water as usual. Alot less work with this method. Watch what happens... Put one cup in a quart spray, and folier feed four times a week for amazing eye-poppin results. Visit: www.CannabisWormTea.com

Businesses and other Commercial Resources Others? Are on the Biz Page, and/or - Will be listed here, especially if it's in the Region.   As we get the info. Know about one yourself? Post it on the Bulletin Board, below.

  NEWs and related Resources  

Medical Marijuana in America: The Map - Friday, 08 August 2014 Medical Marijuana in America: The Map - by NORML

Washington, D.C.: NORML has updated its homepage's medical cannabis section, including a newly designed national map of medical marijuana states to reflect the recent surge in states that have passed so-called 'CBD-only' legislation. Currently in the United States, 35 states have reformed their laws via legislation or binding voter ballot initiative to allow qualified patients medical access to cannabis products. This time last year, 21 states and the District of Columbia had medical cannabis laws on the books--a sixty percent increase in a single year.

The laws today governing medical cannabis at the state level breakdown to three basic categories: Self-preservation (patient has medical necessity defense for possessing or growing cannabis); Retail access (patient can access cannabis in retail store; home cultivation is often prohibited) and CBD-only (patients are allowed to possess and use cannabis strains and other products high in cannabidiol [CBD], although generally there is no legal source for the patients to obtain those strains; no home cultivation allowed). A few states have hybrid medical cannabis programs where patients can both cultivate a personal amount of cannabis and also have retail access to cannabis products (notably Washington, Oregon, Colorado and Maine). Minnesota's law only allows for "oils and concentrates to be 'vaporized'".

NORML executive director Allen St. Pierre stated, "Major media news outlets have recently published inaccurate maps regarding medical cannabis and we want to make sure the public, notably cannabis consumers and patients, have an accurate understanding of America's ever-changing ganja geography. What makes NORML's medical cannabis map up-to-date is that it accurately reflects which states are yet to implement their law reforms to allow legal access." For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, or Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Director, at: (202) 483-5500. Source >> norml.org/news/2014/08/08/medical-marijuana-in-america-the-map

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RESEARCHERS FIND STUDY OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISCOURAGED Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/health/policy/19marijuana.html

Despite the Obama administration's tacit support of more liberal state medical marijuana laws, the federal government still discourages research into the medicinal uses of smoked marijuana. That may be one reason that -- even though some patients swear by it -- there is no good scientific evidence that legalizing marijuana's use provides any benefits over current therapies. Lyle E. Craker, a professor of plant sciences at the University of Massachusetts, has been trying to get permission from federal authorities for nearly nine years to grow a supply of the plant that he could study and provide to researchers for clinical trials.

But the Drug Enforcement Administration -- more concerned about abuse than potential benefits -- has refused, even after the agency's own administrative law judge ruled in 2007 that Dr. Craker's application should be approved, and even after Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. in March ended the Bush administration's policy of raiding dispensers of medical marijuana that comply with state laws.

"All I want to be able to do is grow it so that it can be tested," Dr. Craker said in comments echoed by other researchers. Marijuana is the only major drug for which the federal government controls the only legal research supply and for which the government requires a special scientific review.

"The more it becomes clear to people that the federal government is blocking these studies, the more people are willing to defect by using politics instead of science to legalize medicinal uses at the state level," said Rick Doblin, executive director of a nonprofit group dedicated to researching psychedelics for medical uses. On Monday, his last full day in office, Gov. Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey signed a measure passed by the Legislature last week that made the state the 14th in the nation to legalize the use of marijuana to help with chronic illnesses.

The measure was pushed by a loose coalition of patients suffering from chronic illnesses like Lou Gehrig's disease and multiple sclerosis who said marijuana eased their symptoms. Studies have shown convincingly that marijuana can relieve nausea and improve appetite among cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Studies also prove that marijuana can alleviate the aching and numbness that patients with H.I.V. and AIDS suffer.

There are strong hints that marijuana may ameliorate some of the neurological problems associated with such degenerative diseases as multiple sclerosis, said Dr. Igor Grant, director of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at the University of California, San Diego. But there is no good evidence that legalizing the smoking of marijuana is needed to provide these effects. The Food and Drug Administration in 1985 approved Marinol, a prescription pill of marijuana's active ingredient, T.H.C. Although a few small-scale studies done decades ago suggest that smoked marijuana may prove effective when Marinol does not, no conclusive research has confirmed this finding.

And Marinol is no panacea. There are at least three medicines that in most patients provide better relief from nausea and vomiting than Marinol, studies show. Buddy Coolen, 31, of Warwick, R.I., said he tried or continued to use some of those medicines. "Smoking for me is as good as any medicine I have," he said.

Eight years ago, Mr. Coolen contracted gastroparesis and cyclic vomiting syndrome. He lost 50 pounds and, despite being 5 foot 11, weighed 120 pounds. His doctors gave him myriad anti-emetics, many of which he still takes. They also prescribed Marinol, but it did not work for him, Mr. Coolen said.

"My stepdad is old school and was really against marijuana, but then he saw what it did for me and totally changed his way of thinking," Mr. Coolen said. Some doctors and law enforcement officials say such anecdotes should not drive public policy. Dr. Eric Braverman, medical director of a multispecialty clinic in Manhattan, said legalizing marijuana was unnecessary and dangerous since Marinol provided the medicinal effects of the plant. "Our society will deteriorate," he said.

Patients who call Dr. Braverman's clinic are, when put on hold, told that the clinic may prescribe supplements and other alternative treatments that have even less scientific justification than marijuana. Dr. Braverman said such alternatives rendered marijuana unnecessary, but his embrace of alternatives is a reminder that medicine has long been driven by more than science. About 20 percent of drug prescriptions are written for uses that are not approved by federal drug regulators; about half of the nation's adults regularly take supplements; herbal and homeopathic remedies are popular.

The nation's growing embrace of medical marijuana has stemmed from these alternative traditions. The University of Mississippi has the nation's only federally approved marijuana plantation. If they wish to investigate marijuana, researchers must apply to the National Institute on Drug Abuse to use the Mississippi marijuana and must get approvals from a special Public Health Service panel, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Food and Drug Administration. But federal officials have repeatedly failed to act on marijuana research requests in a timely manner or have denied them, according to a 2007 ruling by an administrative law judge at the Drug Enforcement Administration. While refusing to approve a second marijuana producer, the government allowed the University of Mississippi to supply Mallinckrodt, a drug maker, with enough marijuana to eventually produce a generic version of Marinol.

"As the National Institute on Drug Abuse, our focus is primarily on the negative consequences of marijuana use," said Shirley Simson, a spokeswoman for the drug abuse institute, known as NIDA. "We generally do not fund research focused on the potential beneficial medical effects of marijuana." The Drug Enforcement Administration said it was just following NIDA's lead. "D.E.A. has never denied a research registration for marijuana and/or THC if NIDA approved the protocols for that individual entity," a supervisory special agent, Gary Boggs, said by e-mail.

Researchers investigating LSD, Ecstasy and other illegal drugs can use any of a number of suppliers licensed by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Dr. Doblin said. And if a researcher wants to use a variety of marijuana that the University of Mississippi does not grow -- and there are many with differing medicinal properties -- they are out of luck, Dr. Doblin said. Law enforcement tends to emphasize the abuse potential of medicines without regard to their positive effects. Bureaucratic battles between the D.E.A. and the F.D.A. over the availability of narcotics -- highly effective but addictive medicines -- have gone on for decades.

So medical marijuana may never have good science underlying its use. But for patients in desperate need, the ethics of providing access to the drug are clear, said Dr. Richard Payne, a professor of medicine and divinity and director of the Institute for Care on the End of Life at Duke Divinity School.

"It's not a great drug," he said, "but what's the harm?"

Newshawk: Medical Marijuana
Source: United States Times (NY), Page: A14
Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
Author: Gardiner Harris
Pubdate: Tue, 19 Jan 2010
Webpage: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/health/policy/19marijuana.html
Cited: Lyle E. Craker
Cited: Rick Doblin
Cited: The Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research
Referenced: New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act
Bookmark: (Cannabis - Medicinal - U.S.)

ABC News/Washington Post Poll: 81 Percent Support Legalizing Marijuana for Medical Use - ANALYSIS By GARY LANGER, Jan. 18, 2010 Source: http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/Politics/medical-marijuana-abc-news-poll-analysis/story?id=9586503

Eight in 10 Americans support legalizing marijuana for medical use and nearly half favor decriminalizing the drug more generally, both far higher than a decade ago. With New Jersey this week poised to become the 14th state to legalize medical marijuana, 81 percent in this national ABC News/Washington Post poll support the idea, up from an already substantial 69 percent in 1997. Indeed the main complaint is with restrictions on access, as in the New Jersey law. Click > here < for PDF with charts and questionnaire. -

Fifty-six percent say that if it's allowed, doctors should be able to prescribe medical marijuana to anyone they think it can help. New Jersey's measure, which is more restrictive than most, limits prescriptions to people with severe illnesses. State health officials can add to the list.

DECRIMINALIZE? - Apart from medical marijuana, there have been recent efforts to decriminalize marijuana more broadly in some states. A preliminary vote on one such measure is to be held in the Washington state Legislature this week. In California organizers say they've collected enough signatures to hold a statewide referendum on the issue next fall. And a separate proposal in California to legalize and tax the drug cleared a legislative committee last week. A Field poll there in April found 56 percent support for the idea, which its backers say would raise $1.3 billion a year. Nationally, this survey finds 46 percent support for legalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use the same as it was last spring, and well above its level in past years, for example 39 percent in 2002 and 22 percent in 1997.

GROUPS - Age is a factor. Just 23 percent of senior citizens favor legalizing marijuana for personal use; that jumps to 51 percent of adults under age 65. There are political and ideological differences as well: Thirty percent of conservatives and 32 percent of Republicans favor legalization, compared with 49 percent of independents, 53 percent of Democrats and more than half of moderates and liberals alike (53 and 63 percent, respectively). Medical marijuana, for its part, receives majority support across the political and ideological spectrum, from 68 percent of conservatives and 72 percent of Republicans as well as 85 percent of Democrats and independents and about nine in 10 liberals and moderates. Support slips to 69 percent among seniors, vs. 83 percent among all adults under age 65.

There are similar divisions on whether medical marijuana should be restricted or made available to anyone a doctor thinks it would help. Overall, 56 percent, as noted, prefer no restrictions, while 21 percent say it should be limited to terminally ill patients and an additional 21 percent say it should be limited to those with serious but not necessarily terminal illnesses. Liberals are 23 points more apt than conservatives, and Democrats 20 points more likely than Republicans, to oppose restrictions. There's also a difference between the sexes, with men 10 points more likely than women to say the doctor should decide.

But the main difference is whether people think marijuana should be permitted for medical uses in the first place. Among supporters, 63 percent would rely on the doctor's discretion. Among those who oppose medical marijuana, 75 percent say that if it is allowed, it should be limited to seriously or terminally ill patients. New Jersey passed its medical marijuana law this month and outgoing Gov. Jon Corzine is expected to sign it tomorrow morning, his last day in office. Medical marijuana first became legal in California in 1996, followed by Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington state.

METHODOLOGY - This ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by telephone Jan. 12-15, 2010, among a random national sample of 1,083 adults, including landline and cell-phone-only respondents, with an oversample of African Americans (weighted to their correct share of the population) for a total of 153 black respondents. Results for the full sample have a 3.5-point error margin. Click > here < for a detailed description of sampling error. Sampling, data collection and tabulation by TNS of Horsham, PA. Source: http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/Politics/medical-marijuana-abc-news-poll-analysis/story?id=9586503

LOOKING FOR RATIONAL APPROACHES THROUGH PROS AND CONS

"When these difficult Cases occur, they are difficult chiefly because while we have them under Consideration all the Reasons pro and con are not present to the Mind at the same time... To get over this, my Way is, to divide half a Sheet of Paper by a Line into two Columns, writing over the one Pro, and over the other Con... And tho' the Weight of Reasons cannot be taken with the Precision of Algebraic Quantities, yet when each is thus considered separately and comparatively, and the whole lies before me, I think I can judge better, and am less likely to take a rash Step..."

Benjamin Franklin Letter to Joseph Priestley September 19, 1772

http://www.ProCon.org/

Like Benjamin Franklin, many of us make difficult decisions by penning pros and cons on a divided sheet of paper. Applying this concept to the 21st Century, a non-profit called ProCon.org established a website that over the last 20 years has picked "topics that are complicated and important to many Americans and that fit [ProCon.org's] mission of 'Promoting education, critical thinking, and informed citizenship by presenting controversial issues in a straightforward, nonpartisan primarily pro-con format.'" ProCon.org carries this simple divided list one step further by assigning a ranking system to the citations used to substantiate the pro and con positions. Statistical reports from government sources secure the highest five star rankings, while experts, the media, and organizations/VIPs scale respectively downward from four stars to one star. ProCon.org applies a defined, objective methodology to its ranking system, citations, and selection of topics for analysis.

While several categories touch on public policies toward illegal drugs (ACLU, Death Penalty, Felon Voting, and Alternative Energy), three speak directly to the topic: Sports and Drugs, Prescription Drugs, and Medical Marijuana. . Sports and Drugs: http://sportsanddrugs.procon.org/ - Prescription Drugs: http://prescriptiondrugs.procon.org/ - Medical Marijuana: http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/ Sports and Drugs focuses on athletic competition and performance enhancing substances, often hitting reform's radar when the target is marijuana. Displayed in the recently-added Prescription Drugs category are ads for yesterday's therapeutic agents, many of which are now today's illicit substances. Cocaine toothache drops, morphine cough syrup for children, Bayer brand heroin, and Eli Lilly methamphetamine - side by side with ads for currently marketed pharmaceuticals - show that legal versus illegal is more a function of social mores and moral regulation than the drug itself.

The Medical Marijuana category illustrates this well. The "Should marijuana be a medical option" link scrolls through pages and pages of pro and con citations, with the "pros" eventually overcoming the "con" argument to win the debate. The utility of ProCon.org doesn't end with simply balancing the debate; the site contains a wealth of information relating to medicinal cannabis. Check out these links:

Medical Marijuana Historical Timeline. This cited timeline begins in 2737 BC and advances by major cannabis related event into the present. Did you know that Gautama Buddha is said to have survived by eating only cannabis seeds? Or that cannabis root applied to skin eases inflammation? Learn more at: http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewresource.asp?resourceID

Peer-Reviewed Studies on Marijuana. The sixty-five studies that comprise this list dispel the myth that no scientific research exists concerning herbal cannabis. Labeled "Pro," "Con," or "Not Clearly Pro or Con," the "Pros" are clearly winning. http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewresource.asp?resourceID

Deaths from Marijuana v. 17 FDA-Approved Drugs. This interesting table found its roots in ProCon.org's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the number of deaths caused by marijuana compared to the number of deaths caused by 17 FDA-approved drugs, many used in place of marijuana. "Primary suspect of the death" for marijuana = 0. "Primary suspect" for the 17 FDA-approved drugs = 10,008. http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewresource.asp?resourceID=000145

We live in complex and contentious times, marked by varied and changing issues that often become mired in confusing messages from conflicting messengers. ProCon.org's mission and format help sort through the mountain of supporting and opposing viewpoints. As Benjamin Franklin astutely observed, by evaluating an issue's pros and cons, we can "judge better, and [be] less likely to take a rash step."

Author: Mary Jane Borden Note: Mary Jane Borden is a writer, artist, and activist in drug policy from Westerville, Ohio. She serves as Business Manager/Fundraising Specialist for DrugSense
Newshawk: The Ohio Patient Network
Pubdate: Fri, 26 Jun 2009
Source: DrugSense Weekly (DSW)

DEA NIXES CHALLENGE TO OLE MISS MONOPOLY; and Growing Pot for REAL Research

Guns blazing as they head for the exit, the Bush gang has blasted the hopes of Lyle Craker, a UMass Amherst botany professor who applied in June, 2001 for a DEA license to grow marijuana for FDA-approved medical research. On Jan. 12 Craker got a formal letter of denial from DEA Administrator Michele Leonhartt. Mahmoud ElSohly of the University of Mississippi remains America's only legal grower, as far as the feds are concerned.

Some of the destructive regulations promulgated by Bush in recent months may be reversible, but the DEA's rejection of Craker appears to be final. Lawyers are exploring the appeal options, according to Rick Doblin, who organized legal and political support for Craker. Doblin didn't sound optimistic on the phone Jan. 13.

Prof. Craker has already won an appeal -- but it didn't count, as we shall explain. His application had been rejected by the DEA in December, 2004, following a three-and-a-half year "evaluation process." With pro-bono help from DC lawyers and the ACLU, he appealed. An extensive hearing was conducted by Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner at DEA headquarters in Arlington. Team Craker argued that "the current system does not provide an adequate and uninterrupted supply of marijuana for legitimate purposes," and "creating an alternative to the current NIDA-controlled monopoly would promote the advancement of science and research by adding competition without increasing the risk of diversion."

The DEA called ElSohly, who spent December 13 and 14, 2005, defending his monopoly. His testimony was revealing. Much of his work for the government involves testing the potency of thousands of marijuana samples seized by law enforcement agencies throughout the country. On his own time, presumably, he has patented a THC-extract suppository, which a corporation called Insys is trying to market. (Can they think of a better slogan than "Up yours, America?") El Sohly also has a contract with Mallinckrodt, a giant chemical company that plans to market a THC-extract pill as an alternative to Marinol (which is synthetic THC in prescribable pill form).

ElSohly testified that the marijuana he grows for NIDA meets all the needs of U.S. researchers. His most recent crop, grown in the summer of 2002, averaged about 7% THC. It was stored in drums lined with plastic in refrigerated vaults. Upon getting word from NIDA that a researcher's request had been granted, ElSohly sends a batch to the Research Triangle Institute in North Carolina to be machine-rolled into cigarettes.

ElSohly testified that marijuana higher than 8% THC would gum up the rolling machines. Moreover, he said, administrators from the University of California's Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research had advised him that patients in clinical trials could not tolerate marijuana with THC content above 8%. That's a dubious claim. In any case, one puff of an 8% THC cigarette provides the same amount as two puffs a of 4%-THC cig. Clinical trial protocols can be adjusted accordingly.

One of the recipients of ElSohly's NIDAwanna is Irvin Rosenfeld, a Ft. Lauderdale stockbroker whose rare bone disorder qualified him for the "Investigational New Drug Program" launched by the feds in the Carter era (and closed to new patients by Poppy Bush when AIDS patients began applying en masse at the start of the '90s). "I had a strong personal interest in ElSohly's testimony," writes Rosenfeld in a forthcoming memoir. "If the quality of government-issued medicine improved, I could smoke less, and the mild side effects would be even milder.

"An aspect of medical marijuana use that the Drug Czar and other Prohibitionists won't acknowledge is: the higher the concentration of THC and other active ingredients, the smaller the amount required by the patient. If the main adverse effect is damage to lung tissue -- as Ethan Russo and other researchers have found -- then the less a patient has to smoke, the better. Nevertheless, the government regularly issues warnings that 'today's pot is much stronger than pot in the 1970s...' as if that made it more dangerous instead of more efficient!"

One of ElSohly's self-serving contentions was that all marijuana studies should be conducted with material similar in potency to the national average. "What makes sense," he said, "is to look at the national data for potency, for what's out there on the street, and... mimic what's out there and to do research with those kinds of materials."

That approach would be reasonable if the focus of research was harm, not medical benefit; and indeed, almost all the marijuana research NIDA has sponsored over the years has been aimed at finding adverse effects. For those studies, using marijuana comparable to what most Americans are smoking might make sense. But for research aimed at finding beneficial effects, scientists should be provided with the highest-grade strains, not the national average.

Judge Bittner was not impressed by ElSohly's arguments. On Feb.12, 2007, she issued her opinion, which concluded that competition among producers would be in the public interest. DEA lawyers had argued that the existing arrangement involved competition because Craker (and others) could submit a bid against ElSohly every five years when the NIDA contract came up for renewal. Bittner observed, "The NIDA contract requires the contractor to analyze samples of marijuana supplied by law enforcement agencies, a separate activity from cultivating marijuana for research purposes, and a requirement a qualified cultivator may not be able to fulfill."

So Craker won his appeal... but when the name of the game is Administrative Law, nobody wins except the government agency. The judge doesn't decide how the agency must act, her opinion is merely a recommendation that the agency chief can accept, reject, or modify. DEA Administrator Leonhartt and her predecessor, Karen Tandy, sat on ALJ Bittner's opinion for 23 months, and then shot it down, along with the hopes of many drug policy reformers. The record contained letters of support for Craker from Massachusetts Senators John Kerry and Ted Kennedy and 45 members of Congress. "As each day got closer to January 20," Doblin said ruefully, "I couldn't help thinking they might punt it over to the Obama Administration."

Granting a license to a second grower of marijuana for federally approved research seems like the kind of small step away from prohibition that the Obama Administration might be willing to make.

As this goes off to CounterPunch Jan. 15 -- the day the DEA decision re Craker was published in the Federal Register -- Rick Doblin reports that the lawyers see a ray of hope: "DEA makes a big deal in their final ruling that rejection of the FDA-approved protocols of Donald Abrams and Ethan Russo took place before the current HHS Guidelines were issued. DEA claims that since no rejections have taken place after the guidelines were in force, there is no evidence that it is difficult or impossible for an FDA-approved researcher to obtain marijuana from NIDA. The HHS 1999 Guidelines were issued May 21, 1999. Russo's protocol was approved by FDA in September 1999 and rejected by NIDA/HHS in December 1999, with the written rejection received in February 2000. We may submit this as new evidence."

A Note on the Coverage

A brief story about the DEA turning down Craker ran in the Boston Globe Jan. 13. It made no reference to the political significance of the timing. Reporter Bina Venkataraman portrayed the whole process and outcome as quite rational: "The DEA decision called the current supply of marijuana for research 'adequate and uninterrupted' and said a second laboratory would not be in the public interest. Since 1968, a federally approved laboratory at the University of Mississippi's School of Pharmacy has grown nearly a hundred varieties of marijuana plants... The plants have been used for clinical studies across the country."

Venkataraman made Rick Doblin out to be a bit of a spinmeister: "Doblin... calls the Mississippi lab a monopoly." When one company controls all the business, it is a monopoly. She falsely summarized and minimized criticisms of ElSohly's operation: "Some researchers complain that access to the laboratory's supply is thwarted by a contract it holds with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which must approve permits issued by the Food and Drug Administration or the DEA in a process that can take months to complete." Months? The right word would have been "years" or "a lifetime." And would-be researchers have many complaints in addition to the length of the approval process.

By some strange coincidence -- or was it the Ol' Miss p.r. machine, or NIDA's? -- the United States Times ran a flattering interview with ElSohly on Dec. 23, shortly before the DEA announced it was upholding his monopoly. No mention was made of Craker's application or ElSohly's opposition to it. I emailed the interviewer, Claudia Dreifus, to ask at whose initiative the piece was written, but didn't hear back. I met Claudia in United States in 1970. She had just published an article about A.J. Weberman, who used to go through Bob Dylan's garbage cans on MacDougal Street. One time Dylan, who had a family and his own privacy to protect, caught Weberman and dealt with him appropriately. Weberman shared his happy recollection of the encounter with Claudia: "All I could think of was 'Bob Dylan is beating the shit out of me.'"

Here she is, all these years later, a professor at Columbia University and a regular in the United States Times Science section, lobbing softballs to Mahmoud ElSohly. Comments in italics are by your correspondent.

Dreifus: What exactly does the Marijuana Project do?

ElSohly: At this laboratory, which began in 1968, we often investigate marijuana's chemistry. We also have a farm where we grow cannabis for federally approved researchers. Our material is employed in clinical studies around the country, to see if the active ingredient in this plant is useful for pain, nausea, glaucoma, for AIDS patients and so on.

[ The image is of a panoply of clinical trials being conducted in the U.S. -- a key point The DEA Administrator made in rejecting Craker's application. ]

Dreifus: One of the basic principles of agronomy is to start with good seeds. Where do your seeds come from?

ElSohly. That's a very good question. [ Patronizing. He realizes she's not a science whiz. ] Most of the illicit material in the 1960s came from Mexico. So, in collaboration with the D.E.A. and the Mexican government, we acquired those seeds. Later, we acquired others from Colombia, Thailand, Jamaica, India, Pakistan and places in the Middle East. That permitted us to study chemical and botanical differences. By 1976, we were growing about 96 different varieties.

Interestingly, that led us to see that there was only one species of cannabis. It had always been thought that there were many. But you could see that the chemistry of this plant is the same qualitatively no matter where it comes from.

[ He's claiming undue credit. The one-species theory dates back to Linnaeus The modern paper usually cited in this regard is: Small, Beckstead and Chan. 1975. The evolution of cannabinoid phenotypes in Cannabis. Economic Botany 29:219-232. All three authors were based in Canada, grew their own plants and ran their own analytic lab tests. ]

What makes each different is the relative proportion of the different chemicals in there, which doesn't make a different species. It's really the same species, but different varieties of it. The different types of varieties hybridize very easily.

Dreifus: Does this mean that one could make genetically modified cannabis?

ElSohly: Yes. Absolutely. That actually has been the trend over the years in the cultivation in the illicit market, and also in the legal market, where we are doing genetic selection, where we select specific materials that have the genes that produce higher levels of THC or some of the other ingredients.

[ Apparently she means to invoke Monsanto-style Frankenfood genetic modification and he's talking about Mendelian genetics and selective breeding. ]

Dreifus: So out there in rural Northern California, have they been improving their crops with modern genetics?

ElSohly: They have been doing genetic selection for years. You can see the potency keeps going up. In the 1970s, the seized marijuana had probably 1 percent or less of the active ingredient. Now, it's about 8 percent, on the average.

[ Some enlightened California dispensary operators have begun using an analytic test lab to determine cannabinoid levels and to check for the presence of mold. According to Steve DeAngelo of Oakland's Harborside Dispensary, "The cannabis that an experienced user would consider ordinary, we're finding, is in the 10%-THC range. Cannabis considered strong would be 20%-THC or higher." ]

Dreifus: How did you come to your unusual specialty?

ElSohly: The honest truth is [ Don't you always tell it like it is, Dr. ElSohly? ] that it began out of necessity. In 1975, while I was in my last year of graduate school in natural products chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh, the Lord provided me with twin daughters...

[ Didn't Mrs. E. have anything to do with it? ]

Sorry to sound catty. I've met ElSohly's family, his offspring seemed well-adjusted and gorgeous. But his defense of his monopoly has been unseemly, to put it mildly, and the role of the corporate media in upholding marijuana prohibition is reprehensible. Their basic trick is to cover the subject sporadically, assigning reporters who have to make a fast, superficial study of the subject and can barely understand, let alone convey, the connections between legal, political, and scientific developments... Note how assertions made by ElSohly to Claudia D. wound up in the reporting of Bina V... The Times owns the Globe. Maybe they're applying economies of scale, saving money on facts.

Author: Fred Gardner
Pubdate: Fri, 16 Jan 2009
Source: CounterPunch (US Web)
Website: http://www.counterpunch.org/
Newshawk: Dale Gieringer www.canorml.org
Referenced: The DEA judge's opinion http://www.maps.org/ALJfindings.PDF
Referenced: The DEA Denial of Application http://www.aclu.org/pdfs/drugpolicy/craker_dearejectionofapplication.pdf
Referenced: The Boston Globe article http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v09/n048/a06.html
Referenced: The United States Times ElSohly interview http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1152/a04.html
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Lyle+Craker
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Rick+Doblin
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/ElSohly
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Irvin+Rosenfeld
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Ethan+Russo
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Donald+Abrams
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)

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Resources, News - The American Alliance For Medical Cannabis (AAMC) The American Alliance For Medical Cannabis (AAMC) | Dedicated to bringing patients, caregivers and volunteers the facts they need to make informed decisions about whether Cannabis is the right medicine for them, the laws surrounding Medicinal Marijuana in your area, political activism and even handy recipes and guides to growing your own nontoxic medicine. visit: http://www.letfreedomgrow.com/news-t21.htm

Resources, News - Cannabis Times,  Alternative News Service for Cannabis and Hemp Cannabis Times. Alternative News Service for Cannabis and Hemp ... Montana Woman on Hunger Strike for Medical Cannabis. Visit Robin's Site * E-Mail the ... The science of medical cannabis continued its climb in estimation of medical professionals and ... visit: www.cannabistimes.com

Resources, News - Common Sense for Drug Policy: Medical Marijuana Facts & News. Common Sense for Drug Policy: Medical Marijuana Facts & News. Tuesday, July 12, 2005. Search using CSDP's own search tool or use. WWW Common Sense. More CSDP News Pages ... card program for medical marijuana patients. The suspension has ... consequences of issuing medical marijuana ID cards that could affect medical marijuana users, their families ... www.csdp.org/news/news/medmar.htm

Resources, News - cannabisnews.com, by DrugSense cannabisnews.com, by DrugSense | a News feed page. Visit: cannabisnews.com

Resources, News - Stop the Drug War (DRCNet) Stop the Drug War (DRCNet) is an international organization working for an end to drug prohibition worldwide and for interim policy reform in US drug laws and criminal justice system. visit - stopthedrugwar.org/news

  some HISTORY  

Medical Cannabis, History - Letter: Medical Marijuana Informational Guide on Medical Cannabis | If you have ever heard of the song, “Lets Go Get Stoned,” as sung by Ray Charles or Joe Cocker, you know the lyrics were referring to getting high or using cannabis aka marijuana. This mind altering drug goes by other names as well; names such as weed, pot, joint, blunt, hash and mary jane are quite common among users. Cannabis is a plant that contains a chemical called cannabinoids or cannabinolidic acids. Another substance that is found in cannabis is THC, or Tetrahydrocannabinol, which gives the users that “high” sensation. When speaking of marijuana, the actual substance used in creating the high feeling comes from the leaves and flowering tops of the cannabis plant. Marijuana is considered to be a schedule 1 controlled substance today, because of the THC, which can be highly potent, depending upon the concentration factor of the THC. Visit > http://www.worldmedassist.com/informational-guide-on-medical-cannabis/ < for more.

Medical Cannabis History - REEFER MADNESS BOOKS THE REEFER MADNESS ERA, REEFER MADNESS BOOKS (Info, History) By definition, it would be a contradiction in terms to list or classify a Reefer Madness book as a work of "Non-Fiction." Thus both genres are group together here simply as "Hard Cover" books; if only to distinguish them from the "Pulp Fiction" or "Dime Store novels" discussed elsewhere. However where appropriate the terms [Fiction] and [Non-Fiction] are used. Please take note - This Index consists solely of those books that the museum has been able to locate and is in no way shape or form complete. It should be thought of only as a starting point. Visit: http://www.reefermadnessmuseum.org/

Medical Cannabis History - Pharmacutical Museum Cannabis medical manufacturer Pharmacutical Museum Cannabis medical manufacturer | [Made post-1937 medical Cannabis products]. Burrough Brothers Mfg Co. - 123 Market Place, Baltimore, ... Korn Pop Remedy Co. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ... visit - www.conquestdesign.com/uncler/MfgIndex.htm

Medical Cannabis History - Cannabis Quack Medicines Cannabis Quack Medicines | ... contained it as an ingredient, Medical Cannabis was as common as aspirin is ... the Hazeltine Corp., of Warren Pennsylvania, was founded in 1869, and soon ... visit - antiquecannabisbook.com/chap15/Quack.htm

Medical Cannabis History  - Marijuana (cannabis) News Archive, by NORML NORML News Archive.  Visit - http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3442

Medical Cannabis History  - Dr Tod; California doctor braves political pressure to prescribe marijuana for those in need. Dr Tod | California doctor braves political pressure to prescribe marijuana for those in need. ... German mother in a small Pennsylvania town during the Depression and ... California Cannabis Resear... Click > here < for more.

Medical Cannabis History  - Medical Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Re-legalization Medical Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Re-legalization |... Youth," was, in fact, Cannabis Hemp, the most traded commodity in the world ... visit - www.afgen.com/hemp2.html

  Cannabis as Medicine  

Medical Cannabis - LESSON PLAN:MEDICAL MARIJUANA - LEGITIMATE USE OR LEGALIZED ABUSE? LESSON PLAN:MEDICAL MARIJUANA - LEGITIMATE USE OR LEGALIZED ABUSE? By Lisa Prososki, a former middle school and high school social studies, English, reading and technology teacher. Estimated Time: Approximately 45 minutes/1 class period Lesson Objectives: (1) Students will use cooperative learning activities to discuss opinions about medical marijuana use and see both sides of the issue, (2) Students will use decision making skills and strategies to render their own decision about the U.S. Supreme Court case related to medical marijuana use. Click > here < for more.

Medical Cannabis - Pros & cons on medical marijuana Medical Marijuana Pro/Con * Pros & cons on medical marijuana. Science, risks, policies, & laws. Should marijuana be a medical option? This site presents in a simple, nonpartisan pro-con format, responses to the core question "Should marijuana be a medical option?" Divided questions about the topic into the issues and sub-issues listed below. All individuals and organizations quoted on our site are ranked based upon our unique credibility scale. [Note: Although physicians and attorneys are listed on this site, they do not recommend or refer either.] visit: www.medicalmarijuanaProCon.org

Medical Cannabis - Medical Marijuana News and Facts Medical Cannabis (marijuana) News, Information, Organizations, Links.  Resources and more. visit - http://www.medicalmj.org/

Medical Cannabis - Factbook: Medical Marijuana Factbook: Medical Marijuana

1. Since 1996, twelve states have legalized medical marijuana use: AK, CA, CO, HI, ME, MT, NV, NM, OR, RI, VT, and WA. Eight of the twelve did so through the initiative process. Hawaii's law was enacted by the legislature and signed by the governor in 2000, Vermont's was enacted by the legislature and passed into law without the governor's signature in May 2004, Rhode Island's was passed into law over the governor's veto in January 2006, and New Mexico's legislation was signed into law by Governor Bill Richardson on April 2, 2007.

2. The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical marijuana stated, "The accumulated data indicate a potential therapeutic value for cannabinoid drugs, particularly for symptoms such as pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation." And more. Visit - www.drugwarfacts.org/medicalm.htm

Medical Cannabis - Information, NORML, Medical Use, Introduction NORML / Medical Use / Introduction | Introduction. Select One Send All States Canada Mexico Europe Other Alabama Alaska Am. ... District of Columbia FEDERAL Florida Georgia Guam Oklahoma Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana of individual patients to use medical cannabis under state law, or the ... visit: http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=5441

Medical Cannabis - Information, Medical Marijuana Handbook  Medical Marijuana Handbook | This a draft by Todd. H. Mikuriya MD, a long-time advocate of medical cannabis, respected author and one of the medical staff at the San Francisco Buyers Club. Its patchy, and uncomplete, and acts only as a framework for Dr Todd to store snippets of info on various aspects of medical cannabis. Marijuana as Medicine - A Plea for Reconsideration, is a commentary article written by Lester Grinspoon and James Bakalar, which appeared in the June 21st 1995 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Medical cannabis web resources. Medical Marijuana Handbook This a draft by Todd. H. Mikuriya MD, a long-time advocate of medical cannabis, respected author and one of the medical staff at ... visit: http://www.ukcia.org/medical/webresources.html

Medical Cannabis - Medical Marijuana Info Medical Marijuana Info Online Resource for Medical Marijuana Information. Partners. Events. Legalization. Doctors. Federal Law(s) Lawyers. Medical/Medicinal. AIDS/HIV. History. Magazines ... Ohio Marijuana Party. Montana. Montana NORML ... Visit: www.medicalmarijuanainfo.com

Medical Cannabis - Medical Marijuana - Master Reference Medical Marijuana - Master Reference | Note: This page was prepared for the November, 1996 election. Some of the external links may be out of date. ... Cannabis Research Library - A collection ... visit - www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/medical_mj.htm

Medical Cannabis - Yields and Dosage Cannabis Yields and Dosage | the authoritative study of the science and legalities of calculating medical marijuana. The booklet is available as a PDF by ... visit - www.safeaccessnow.net/yieldsdosage.htm

Info - Medical Marijuana Medical Marijuana ... to Washington's New Medical Marijuana Law" was adopted to ... The Washington State Medical Marijuana Act CHAPTER 69.51A ... list of professional medical associations. Marijuana as medicine ... Visit: http://www.hartbrothers.com/medimari.html

Medical Cannabis - MarijuanaNews.Com, Freedom has nothing to fear from the truth MarijuanaNews.Com, Freedom has nothing to fear from the truth ... Court Decision On Medical Cannabis Expected This Week ... Medical Marijuana Co-operative Writes About Value Of Cannabis For MS Patients. Photo-ID Cards For Washington State Medical ... Visit: www.marijuananews.com/medical_cannabis.htm

Medical Cannabis - CCRMG - California Cannabis Research Medical Group CCRMG - California Cannabis Research Medical Group - WWW.CCRMG.ORG | Autumn 2004. O'Shaughnessy's. Journal of the California Cannabis Research Medical Group ... medical effects of cannabis. It is unl... visit - www.ccrmg.org/journal/04aut/mikuriya.html

Medical Cannabis - Medical Marijuana by Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Medical cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. A catalog page offering Cannabis sativa extract. Medical cannabis refers to the use of Cannabis as a physician recommended herbal th... visit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_marijuana

Medical Cannabis - Accepted Medical Use of Cannabis: Medical Professionals Accepted Medical Use of Cannabis: Medical Professionals by DrugScience.org. | Cannabis's accepted medical use in the United States is increasingly recognized by health care professionals and the medical community. visit: www.drugscience.org/amu/amu_medprof.htm

Medical Cannabis - Proven : Cannabis is Safe Medicine Proven : Cannabis is Safe Medicine by Ian Williams Goddard | In reaction to medical cannabis access referendums on the ballots in Arizona and California, former presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George Bush signed a letter stating that they "categorically oppose'' access to cannabis for its many proven therapeutic uses such as the prevention of blindness and epileptic seizures. Their chief concern was that legal medical access would send the message that cannabis is safe. The presidents can, however, lay their safety concerns to rest because the scientific literature overwhelmingly confirms that cannabis is both an effective and safe medicine. The Cannabis Safety Profile. The journal PHARMACOLOGICAL REVIEWS reports that decades of research prove that, "Compared with legal drugs...marijuana does not pose greater risks." Yet based upon mortality statistics, we can safely conclude that cannabis is one of the safest medical drugs known, for, while prescription drugs, defined as safe by the FDA, kill up to 27,000 and aspirin up to 1,000 Americans per year, cannabis kills 0 per year. Click here for more.

Medical Cannabis - Medicinal Cannabis Cannabis Facts Medicinal Cannabis Cannabis Facts, Cannabis Law, Hemp, Peyote Info, Salvia Divinorum Info   ... therapeutic uses for medical cannabis has been entertained in ... 1990's, medical cannabis ballot initiatives have received a majority of votes in Arizona, Arizona, California, Colorado ... visit: http://www.cannabis-growing.com/medicinal-cannabis.htm.

Russia - Information Medical Cannabis Strains - Geoffrey Guy, MD (GW Pharmaceuticals, U.K) | Founder and President of G.W. Pharmaceuticals in Russia, Dr. Geoffrey Guy's observations about the mammalian Cannabinoid system (with more receptors throughout the body than any other system) are presented to the Second Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics, held in Portland, OR in May, 2002. First discussing CB1 and CB@ receptors; the modulatory effect on dopamine, GABA and glutamate; and cross-talk with other receptors, Dr. Guy then examines Phyto-Cannabinoids (plant based)THC, CBD and others, with GW's success in producing whole extracts from 3 tonnes/year of dried marijuana and years of genetic breeding to feature both high THC and high CBD strains. ... Visit: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5030388544973469056

Russia - Resources, Information Cannabis Headquarters - Medical Cannabis (Marijuana) Strains ... articles about specific medical conditoins and how cannabis ... ever heard of PURPLE Nepal ? ...   ...   Visit - http://www.cannabishq.com/forum/index.php?topic=612.0.

Russia - Resources, Information Medical Cannabis Menu - Safe 420 Deliver... Purple Russia. Indoor, Indica, very exotic-rare. Purple Nepal.jpg ? SEO by Artio. Medical Cannabis Delivered! 949-334-3065. info@safe420delivery.org ...   ...   Visit - http://www.safe420delivery.org/menu.html.

  BOOKs on Medical Cannabis (marijuana) and related 

Medical Cannabis, Books - Is Marijuana the Right Medicine for You? Is Marijuana the Right Medicine for You? | A Factual Guide to Medical Uses of Marijuana by Bill Zimmerman, PhD with Rick Bayer, MD and Nancy Crumpacker, MD, ISBN#0-87983-906-6 (Keats 1998). Chapter 3: Why All the Controversy? What Does The Research Actually Show? is online at: http://www.medmjscience.org/Media/pdf/chap3.pdf

Medical Cannabis, Books - Cannabis and Cannabinoids; Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutic Potential Examine the pros, cons, and controversies of marijuana as medicine! | Cannabis is still sending “signals of misunderstanding.”1-3 The result is an exaggeration of beneficial or deleterious effects as well as occasional intermixture of medical science with other moral categories. This book deals with health aspects of the cannabis plant and the cannabinoids while mainly factoring out societal aspects. Some authors refer to social topics that require discussion even within the bounds of a narrow handling of medicinal aspects. “Cannabis and Cannabinoids; Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutic Potential”. Edited by Franjo Grotenhermen, MD; Nova-Institut GmBH, Hürth, Germany and Ethan Russo, MD; Montana Neurobehavioral Specialists, Missoula, Montana. Hard Cover (ISBN-13: 978-0-7890-1507-7, ISBN-10: 0-7890-1507-2) $79.95

Medical Cannabis, Books - Marijuana Rx: The Patient's Fight for Medicinal Pot Marijuana Rx: The Patient's Fight for Medicinal Pot (Book) by Robert Randall & Alice O'Leary * This is a story of government betrayal -- a betrayal that continues today. But it is also a story of human courage and perseverance. Please take the time to read this book. Afterall, none of us are immune from the illnesses that marijuana can treat -- glaucoma, cancer, multiple sclerosis and more. Some day you might need medical access to marijuana. We pray that it will be as simple as a doctor's prescription. Full text articles, news summaries, supporting organizations and states, additional resources, and information on medical marijuana. Visit: marijuana-as-medicine.org

Medical Cannabis - Medical Marijuana, research Medical Marijuana Your search on medical marijuana has brought you to Questia, the world's largest online academic library. The Questia online library offers reliable books, journals, and articles that you can trust on medical marijuana.  With Questia you can quickly research, cite, and quote with complete confidence. Save substantial time without sacrificing research quality. Research Medical Marijuana Find quality info at the world's online library. 435,000 books, articles. Search or read full text, highlight, cite and auto-create bibliographies and get a personal bookshelf. Click here for more.

  misc Related LINKs, Web Rings, and such  

Resources, Organizations - Marijuana links Marijuana links. Popular Searches: Medical Marijuana Links. Marijuana Research Links. ... about marijuana, The Washington State Medical Marijuana Act CHAPTER 69.51A RCW This is ... an activist for medical marijuana. Chronic Cannabis Use A report on ... Click > here < for more.

Russia - Resources, Information Cannabis - Medical Wonder Drug or Worldwide Anathema? Cannabis - you'll hear it called wacky backy, marijuana, weed, puff, smoke, pot, ... countries such as Morocco , Lebanon , Pakistan , Nepal , Afghanistan and India ... Major producer countries such as Morocco , Lebanon , Pakistan , Nepal , Afghanistan and India compete in a bouyant market, with around 40% of the weed coming from the "cannabis farms" in Morocco . Significant amounts are also starting to be produced in North America and Europe .   ...   Visit - http://www.guide4living.com/drugabuse/cannabis.htm.

Rhode Island - Medical 101; Links, Web-Ring Medical 101 (Links, “Web-Ring”) * A potential starting point for Medical Cannabis info. Find what you're looking for! Visit: www.medical-101.com/

Rhode Island - Marijuana Drug Slang Dictionary Marijuana Drug Slang Dictionary | Drug Slang Dictionary - Marijuana. Click here for more.

Rhode Island - Rights and Freedoms Our Rights and Freedoms | The U.S. Constitution and it's Bill of Rights bestow our rights and freedoms as Americans. Court interpretations and decisions, like the Supreme Court's Miranda rights ruling define the sco... Click > here < for more.

Rhode Island - Marijuana Statistics and related Resources Whats yours?   Have an item? Post it on the Bulletin Board, below.

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  Comments  
Saturday, May 30 at 12:02 AM:
Marijuana TopShelf Store™ from USA wrote:
"Are you Looking for an Alternative & Effective Treatments to beat Cancer, Severe Pains ,Insomnia,ADD/ADHD, Diabetes, Anxiety, Arthritis, PTSD, Glaucoma, Bipolar, Depression, Spasms, Headache, Seizures, Migraines, Nausea, Stress and many more, Contact us for Top Shelf Medical Marijuana Strains, Cannabis oil, Canasol Eyedrops (treatment for glaucoma), Shatter, Wax, Hash & Edibles on TEXT/CALL: +1 (636) 251 6539 OR (Wickr Me: mjtopshelfstore) "

Friday, May 26 at 07:06 AM:
bertrandy from virginia,USA wrote:
" Please do contact us for your best order and good prices. Text...+1 (915) 440 0353 or email at .....bertrandy1111@gmail.com We are the best and Trusted Vendors in the Market We provide over 500 generic best quality Medications and prescription drugs ranging from PAIN KILLERS,ANXIETY PILLS,ANTI-DEPRESSANT,fake documents (ids passports driver licience,)fake money, antidepressants,Hydrogel Injections, BUTT CREAM, BUTT PILLS, PMMA Injection ,ANTIBIOTICS, PAIN RELIEF, SCHIZOPHRENIA, SLEEP AND INSOMNIA, ANABOLIC STEROIDS,TESTOSTERONE SERIES, RESEARCH CHEMICALS, BATH SALTS, HERBAL INCENSE, pills/tabs and some liquid meds at good prices to people WITH PRESCRIPTION AND WITHOUT PRESCRIPTION AS WELL.We also sell medical marijuana such as White Widow,Purple Kush,Pride of Amsterdam,Snow White,Strawberry Cough,Sour Kush,Bubba Kush,Purple Haze,Russian kush,Himalayan Gold,Pineapple Express,Blue Dream,Blackberry Frost,Green Crack,Afghan Kus,Lemon drop,Sour diesel and many others.Discount are also applicable for bulk buyers.The shipping is meticulously planned; packaging is done and a tracking number available Please do contact us for your best order and good prices Text...+1 (915) 440 0353 or email at ......bertrandy1111@gmail.com "

Sunday, July 12, 2015 at 10:35 AM:
citizen from Terra wrote:
"Dispensaries&#61655; Find Dispensaries; List by Location, Doctors;&#61655; Find Doctors, List by Location, Deals:&#61655; Deals near me, Deals by Location, Explore Strains, more > weedy.com/101 "

Wednesday, September 3, 2014 at 07:05 AM:
i wrote:
"Study Finds Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths in States with Access to Medical Cannabis - Access to medical cannabis is associated with nearly 25 percent fewer prescription drug overdoses each year compared to states where medical cannabis is illegal, a new study suggests. The study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, found that deaths associated with the use of opiate drugs fell in 13 states after they legalized medical cannabis, indicating that the alternative treatment may be safer for patients suffering from chronic pain related to cancer and other conditions. Researchers said that states that pass medical cannabis laws see their overdose death rates decrease dramatically in the years immediately afterward, strengthening over time. >> www.cannabispharmacyjournal.com/2014/08/26/study- finds-fewer-opioid-overdose-deaths-in-states-with-access-to-medical-cannabis/ "

Wednesday, November 27, 2013 at 03:55 PM:
somebody from here wrote:
"Based on 2010 US Census data and FBI arrest data, the ACLU of MD recently compiled a state-by-state listing of places with the highest and lowest levels (per capita) of pot possession arrests. The tallies appear on page 7 of the report here > www.aclu-md.org/uploaded_files/0000/0470/aclu_marijuana_in_md_report_whitecover.pdf

TOP 5 STATES FOR POT POSSESSION ARREST PER CAPITA: Washington, DC; New York, Nebraska, Maryland, Illinois

BOTTOM 5 STATES FOR POT POSSESSION ARREST PER CAPITA: Massachusetts, Hawaii, Alabama, Vermont, Washington

I have a brief summary and analysis of these tallies at the link below. Feel free to share.

Regards,

Paul Armentano, Deputy Director, NORML | NORML Foundation > paul@norml.org * 703-606-7539 (cell)

Visiting the nation’s Capitol? You better hide your stash. > www.hightimes.com/read/visiting-nations-capitol-you-better-hide-your-stash "

Tuesday, June 11, 2013 at 07:53 AM:
i wrote:
" How to Lie With Statistics - Amanda Reiman, Policy manager, Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) | The definition of propaganda is, "Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view. The dissemination of such information as a political strategy." When it comes to information about drug use, the government is famous for using propaganda to maintain its view that drugs and crime go together like peanut butter and jelly, usually through appeals to fear, a propaganda technique in which claims are made for the specific purpose of instilling fear in others. Starting way back in the early 1900's, government propaganda about the criminal behaviors associated with drug use have been targeted at Chinese and Mexican immigrants and continue to target poor communities of color. The combination of a population feared by the general public combined with a behavior that supposedly makes people lose all sense of right and wrong has been a powerful tool in maintaining our nation's racist and classist drug laws. However, we are not the nation we once were, technology and access to information has made us a nation of skeptics, of questioners, and of people who no longer take the government's message at face value. This shift in willingness to blindly follow government agendas has been reflected in the growing support for marijuana legalization and a rising belief that people who use marijuana should not be imprisoned. However, this awakening has not stopped the government from pursuing propagandistic messages as a means to prevent policy change and cloud the public's ability to see the truth.

A recent example of this came from the office of the Drug Czar, amidst a research study looking at the substance using behaviors of those arrested for crime. Although the outcome of the study was framed by Gil Kerlikowske as, "Marijuana is the drug most often linked to crime in the United States", a closer look reveals the roots of old school reefer madness. In this case, the drug crime connection claim is made based on interviews and urine tests conducted on men who had been arrested in five cities across the country, Sacramento, Denver, Chicago, New York and Atlanta. The study reported the instance of a positive urine test and what substance was most commonly detected in that test. It's simple really, and anyone with a basic statistics class can see the fallacies, but, just in case it's been while since you have practiced the art of statistical analysis, let me break it down for you. Here are three ways to break through the propaganda and get to the truth:

While Kerlikowske has singled out marijuana as being linked to crime, the study did NOT report alcohol use by the participants. According to a report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, "An estimated 37% of state prisoners serving time for a violent offense in 2004 said they were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the offense". The lack of information given regarding the alcohol use and intoxication at the time the crime was committed prevents the public from getting the whole picture, but, more worrisome is that it distorts the ability to make evidence informed policy recommendations and to fully understand the relationship between intoxication and crime, as this study purports to do. Could we accurately assess the relationship between nutrition and obesity without including data on how much fast food the population is consuming? Since this story came out, attempts have been made to obtain the data on the alcohol, use, but without success.

Surprising to no one, marijuana, the most commonly used illicit substance in the general population by a longshot, was the most commonly found substance in the urine of these men. Visit - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amanda-reiman/marijuana-and-crime_b_3416385.html "

Monday, June 3, 2013 at 09:19 AM:
i wrote:
"The Creator Of The Wire Explains How The ‘War On Drugs’ Is Really A ‘War On The Poor’ - The creator of The Wire, David Simon, is one America’s foremost critics of America’s War on Drugs. Speaking to The Guardian last month, Simon dissected our country’s continuing policy of jailing people who get involved in “the one industry that’s left” in the inner cities of America. “I’m not entirely convinced that it is not intended as a war on the poor,” Simon said. “It may have begun a long time ago as a war on dangerous drugs, but at some point morphed to the point where it’s really about social control. At this point it’s about doing something with the 15 percent of my country that we don’t need anymore for our lost manufacturing base. So there’s a lot of undereducated people the economy has thrown away.” Like The National Memo‘s David Cay Johnston, Simon believes that the last three decades have been marked by a perversion of the market economy, fueled by government policies. visit - http://www.nationalmemo.com/the-creator-of-the-wire-explains-how-the-war-on-drugs-is-really-a-war-on-the-poor/ "

Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 08:03 PM:
i from here wrote:
"HHS Region Map. Text Version. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Regional Map. Regional telephone, fax, e-mail, and Web sites are available for ... http://www.hhs.gov/about/regionmap.html "

Friday, October 14, 2011 at 10:04 AM:
I wrote:
"good sources for quotes - http://www.spiritcaller.net/quotes/drugs.htm, http://corporatism.tripod.com/quotes.htm, http://scahr.info/culture/quotes.htm "

Wednesday, August 24, 2011 at 04:21 PM:
I also wrote:
" From an American kid hitting a bong while watching Harold and Kumar to a Moroccan enjoying hash with his afternoon tea, people all over the world smoke cannabis.

Despite the popularity of weed and hash, most governments in the world have deemed it harmful to the individual and society as a whole.

There are only 11 nations in the world where weed and hash have been decriminalized. A handful of countries impose mandatory prison sentences and other harsh punishments for the possession or sale of any form of weed and hash. Another handful look the other way when dealing with cannabis. visit - http://matadornetwork.com/nights/guide-to-smoking-pot-around-the-world/ "

Wednesday, August 24 at 04:20 PM:
I, tu, wrote:
" The 5 Worst States to Get Busted With Pot Even a minor pot bust can be life-altering for people unlucky enough to be arrested in one of these five states. - May 13, 2011 | Police prosecute over 800,000 Americans annually for violating state marijuana laws. The penalties for those busted and convicted vary greatly, ranging from the imposition of small fines to license revocation to potential incarceration. But for the citizens arrested in these five states, the ramifications of even a minor pot bust are likely to be exceptionally severe. visit - http://www.theweedblog.com/the-worst-states-to-get-busted-with-marijuana/ "

Wednesday, August 24 at 04:19 PM:
me from here wrote:
"Marijuana.com > Lifestyle Places and People >> Forums > http://www.marijuana.com/places-people/ "

Wednesday, August 24 at 04:18 PM:
i2 from here wrote:
"The mainstream press is constantly rating the best and worst cities in the US, so we decided to add to the noise. Here’s a HIGH TIMES look at the good, the bad and the ugly of herb-an America. visit - http://hightimes.com/entertainment/mmiller/6783 "

Wednesday, August 24 at 04:17 PM:
i from here wrote:
"Alternet: ‘The Five Worst States to Get Busted With Pot’ May 16th, 2011 By: Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director Share this Article Police prosecute over 850,000 Americans annually for violating state marijuana laws. The penalties for those busted and convicted vary greatly, ranging from the imposition of small fines to license revocation to potential incarceration. But for the citizens arrested in these five states, the ramifications of even a minor pot bust are likely to be exceptionally severe. Alternet.org’s editors recently asked me to compile a list of ‘the worst of the worst’ states to be busted for personal pot possession. visit - http://blog.norml.org/2011/05/16/alternet-the-five-worst-states-to-get-busted-with-pot/ "

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 at 06:29 AM:
somebody wrote:
"Here is your one chance to let Obama & the Dems know your thoughts on ending cannabis prohibition. They won't know unless you take the time to tell them. Visit - http://my.barackobama.com/YourThoughts "

Saturday, October 2, 2010 at 05:20 AM:
Diana Northcutt from Plainfield, IL wrote:
" I am looking for legal help in regard to a custody issue. I need legal counsel that might help me pro-bono - Does anyone know of anyone in my state or how to find them?"

Sunday, August 1, 2010 at 04:31 PM:
somebody wrote:
"Top Marijuana Travel Destinations With recreational marijuana use illegal in all US states, Americans are either forced to go through underground sources at home or travel across borders to obtain and use the drug. Some places have significantly decriminalized marijuana or have turned a blind eye to personal use, encouraging travelers from around the globe to visit. See - http://www.cnbc.com/id/36603182?slide=1 "

Saturday, July 4, 2009 at 09:40 PM:
I wrote:
"Best Marijuana Legalization Debate So Far! THE MCLAUGHLIN GROUP DISCUSSES MEDICAL MARIJUANA ... visit - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVeblRX_KEU "

Saturday, June 13 at 08:42 AM:
somebody wrote:
"Anderson cooper all next week is going to be discussing the pros and cons of med. Marijuana on CNN. You can go now and start weighing in on it. visit - http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2009/06/09/is-there-a-case-for- medical-marijuana/comment-page-1/#comment-741940 "

Monday, June 1, 2009 at 01:27 PM:
Per from WVN wrote:
"US Supreme Court Rejects Challenge To State Medical Marijuana Laws - Washington, DC: The US Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal brought by a pair of Southern California counties that sought to challenge the legality of the state's medical marijuana laws. The Court's order lets stand a unanimous 2008 Fourth District CA Court of Appeals ruling that determined that state laws allowing for the medical use of cannabis by qualified patients "do not create a 'positive conflict' [with federal law.]" visit - http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7881 "

Monday, May 18 at 12:23 PM:
nobody special wrote:
"should include a list of the 12 states that have "decrim", which is especially good for patients where they don't have medical law yet: Oregon, California, Maine, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, New York, Colorado, and Massachusetts."

Saturday, March 7, 2009 at 06:55 PM:
somebody wrote:
"JAMES GRAY DISCUSSES CANNABIS ON NPR SAN FRANCISCO

Legalizing Marijuana? A California lawmaker last week introduced a bill to "tax and regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol." Later in the week, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder indicated that the Obama administration may end raids on pot dispensaries in California. Is this the beginning of a sea change in drug policy both in California and the nation? Host: Michael Krasny, Guests: James P. Gray, retired Orange County Superior Court judge and speaker for LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition), John Lovell, lobbyist for California Peace Officers' Association http://www.leap.cc/cms/index.php?name=Web_Links&l_op=visit&lid=190 "

Saturday, March 7 at 06:50 PM:
me here wrote:
"INTERNATIONAL DRUG POLICY: ANIMATED REPORT 2009

Produced by an Oscar-winning studio for the Global Drug Policy Program of the Open Society Institute, International Drug Policy: Animated Report 2009 highlights some of the disastrous effects of drug policy in recent years and proposes solutions for a way forward. http://drugsense.org/url/DeomabyL "

Saturday, March 7, 2009 at 06:32 PM:
me from here wrote:
"THE INTERNATIONAL WAR ON DRUGS HITS CLOSE TO HOME Celebrating 100 years of failure and futility By Brian Doherty

The United Nations is currently celebrating the 100th anniversary of the "international war on drugs." Yes, it was in 1909 that 13 countries joined together in the "International Opium Commission" to halt the Chinese opium trade. And how did that go? visit - http://reason.com/news/show/132034.html "

Wednesday, January 28, 2009 at 12:00 PM:
somebody wrote:
"actually, pot is legal for 7 people in the US for medical purposes. Federally supplied medical marijuana patients get a tin with 300 perfectly- rolled marijuana cigarettes each month. For more information about the program under which they receives their medicine, see Compassionate Investigational New Drug program for more - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compassionate_Investigational_New_Drug_program "

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