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| Group Planning Illinois MMJ Conference |
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Posted by CN Staff on May 25, 2014 at 14:54:51 PT By Meredith Rodriguez, Tribune Reporter Source: Chicago Tribune 
Illinois -- As the rules for a state medical marijuana pilot program are being finalized, a group of proponents has announced that a cannabis conference will be held in Chicago in June. handful of people — including a doctor, a consultant and the vice president of a nonprofit — are trying to improve the drug’s image and increase awareness of its medical benefits with the hope that the four-year pilot program expands in scope and duration.“Don’t be shy. It’s OK to talk about marijuana — cannabis,” Amish Parikh, vice president of My Compassion, the Michigan-based nonprofit that is hosting the June 7-8 conference at Navy Pier, said Thursday. “If you respect the law, the law will stay. We’re trying to teach that as well.” The Illinois Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana Pilot Program Act went into effect January. But the timing for when patients will actually start using the drug is uncertain, according to Melaney Arnold, spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Public Health. “We are hoping by the first part of next year the program will be up and running,” Arnold said. The latest draft proposal of the rules governing medical marijuana was filed in April and is currently in a 45-day public comment period. About two dozen people showed up to a public hearing in Springfield on Wednesday, Arnold said. A final approval by the legislative body will probably not be completed until around early August, at which point Illinois residents will be able to begin applying to use the drug. Supporters like Parikh hope that patients will be able to collect from the 60 statewide retail stores allowed under the law by January. The pilot program also allows for 21 cultivation centers in Illinois. Under the act, doctors would be able to prescribe marijuana for about 40 medical conditions, Melaney said. The Illinois law is more restrictive than in other states where the drug is legalized, according to Patty Schuler, a certified nurse and a mother who is eager to replace some of the 45 synthetic medications that she said her daughter with cerebral palsy and epilepsy uses. “Illinois does not want to follow the lead of California because California has the reputation that it’s free — anybody can get a card, become a patient and go to the next corner to buy cannabis,” Schuler said. “It wants to stay within the boundaries of the law and wants to make sure that doctors are actually doing the work, making recommendations for patients and following up with that patient.” Since the law passed in Illinois, Schuler said, she has become a consultant who wants to educate potential patients and hopes that the 40 medical conditions that can be treated with cannabis under the current pilot program expands to the more than 600 medical conditions she believes the drug can treat. “I am going to make sure it grows,” Schuler said of the pilot program. People can petition to add their medical conditions to the list, and those petitions will be considered twice per year in January and July, Arnold added. Dr. Hernon Toney, a physician at Christ Hospital, said there is also a need for education in the medical field. He believes many of the benefits of cannabis have been suppressed by pharmaceutical companies, but that the medical community needs to embrace this new law. “I think a lot of times the medical community shies away from it when you say ‘medicinal marijuana.’ They say, ‘Oh you’re going to smoke it?’ No that’s not it,” Toney said. “But I know the medical benefits of it.” Source: Chicago Tribune (IL) CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help
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| Comment #12 posted by afterburner on May 28, 2014 at 16:11:39 PT |
| Top 100 Letter Writers (LTEs)
http://www.mapinc.org/lte/topwrit.htm Lots of familiar names on this list. Enjoy! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #11 posted by FoM on May 28, 2014 at 13:58:28 PT |
| It was like The Ed Sullivan Show. Family TV. I think we had 3 channels. LOL! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #10 posted by FoM on May 28, 2014 at 13:58:27 PT |
| It was like The Ed Sullivan Show. Family TV. I think we had 3 channels. LOL! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #9 posted by Hope on May 28, 2014 at 12:24:30 PT |
| It's a sweet memory. Not that I would ever have claimed to like that show. I was a kid. Only really old people liked to watch Lawrence Welk. :) [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #8 posted by FoM on May 27, 2014 at 04:37:07 PT |
| And a one and a two and a three and a four! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #7 posted by Hope on May 26, 2014 at 19:57:37 PT |
| I'm so glad you can get cannabis help legally now. That Lawrence Welk bit was so crazy. You have to be old enough to know who Lawrence Welk was and what he was about to appreciate the irony of this song being sung by these singers and being sung on that show at all. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #6 posted by Sam Adams on May 26, 2014 at 17:27:06 PT |
| Hope, yes, that accordian player has a gleam in his eye and seems to be clearing his throat a bit. Those musicians must have gotten a kick of playing in squaresville, but I'm sure they appreciated the gig. At the end a stern-looking Welk calls the tune a "spiritual"! nice. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by Sam Adams on May 26, 2014 at 17:23:58 PT |
| I was reminded of those who served just the other day when I was at the cannabis doctor getting medically legal (finally! now legal for me to carry 10 ounces) When I walked in the door, the first person I saw looked like a WWII vet, very elderly gentlemen, in a wheelchair, missing both legs. Wow. That cuts right through all the medical MJ propaganda. There was also a veteran fireman who looked to be in obvious discomfort with a disabling injury. I hope all the military folks are getting the support they need today and this year. Medical MJ prohibition makes me realize we live in society where people in pain and suffering are often shunted away, somewhere out of public view, and this is most true with service veterans. It's appalling that we fight so hard to stop people from using cannabis that so desperately need it. I was very proud to see that this medical practice bends over backward to serve suffering veterans (http://integr8mass.com). I think cannabis doctors are absolute saints. They get ridiculed and ostracized for their compassion by the mainstream medical establishment, which is outrageous. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by Hope on May 26, 2014 at 16:32:17 PT |
| I suspect the accordion player. I think he knew the deal. Lol! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by Hope on May 26, 2014 at 16:12:09 PT |
| I have seen it, but I think this is the first time I've noticed the green suits and ties the orchestra is wearing. I hope you all are having a fine day. That's what most, if not all of those we set aside this day in remembrance of, I'm sure, would have happen in remembrance of them. Somber, sad, and painful times bought us days of peace. In remembrance of them that went in harm's way so that many others wouldn't have to, I'm thankful. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by FoM on May 26, 2014 at 09:01:14 PT |
| Wasn't that great! Happy Memorial Day to you too! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Sam Adams on May 26, 2014 at 08:57:16 PT |
| pretty funny, never saw this one before - happy memorial day! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye3ecDYxOkg&feature=share [ Post Comment ] |
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