cannabisnews.com: AMA Discusses Marijuana Medical Use AMA Discusses Marijuana Medical Use Posted by FoM on June 16, 2001 at 10:54:49 PT By Lindsey Tanner, AP Medical Writer Source: Associated Press One month after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the medical use of marijuana, the American Medical Association is being urged to endorse the illegal drug as last-resort pain relief for seriously ill patients.At its policy-setting annual meeting starting here Sunday, the AMA also is being asked to endorse a moratorium on executions nationwide, although it rejected a similar proposal last year. The measures are among more than 250 reports, resolutions and proposals conference delegates are asking the nation's largest group of doctors to approve. Whether the historically cautious group will take a more activist role at its five-day meeting remains to be seen as the group struggles for effectiveness amid a worrisome slide in membership. The challenge is to appeal to physicians with divergent political views while at the same time tackling issues relevant to patients.``They don't want to take positions that they're concerned the public would consider not necessarily appropriate for physicians to take,'' said Dr. Jimmy Hara, a sometimes AMA member and co-president of the Los Angeles chapter of the activist group Physicians for Social Responsibility.Desperately seeking to attract new members, the AMA is more likely than ever to stick to middle ground, Hara said.The marijuana question is an example. The Supreme Court's May 14 ruling that it's illegal to sell or possess marijuana for medical use appears to be having little effect in the eight states with medical marijuana laws, and some have even moved to expand marijuana laws despite the ruling.The AMA's current policy opposes use of medical marijuana but says there should be more research on the issue. But a report by an AMA council says the group should support the ``compassionate use'' of marijuana while also urging further research.Like all proposals at the meeting, the marijuana report could be altered or withdrawn before being sent to the House of Delegates for a vote on whether to make it policy during the meeting's final three days.The AMA enters this year's meeting leaner, in better fiscal health, and - its leaders maintain - better equipped to tackle ongoing challenges such as membership and managed care reform.In its year 2000 financial report, the AMA reported earning $2.7 million on operations, compared with a $15 million loss in 1999. The turnaround was achieved by reducing or eliminating programs and cutting staff by 14 percent, or 188 jobs.But the AMA lost more than 3,000 members and $4.2 million in revenue from membership dues last year, continuing a slide that began several years ago. That puts membership at 290,357, or only about one-third of the nation's 800,000-plus doctors, residents and medical students.Ten years ago, the AMA had nearly 300,000 members, or about 40 percent of the nation's doctors.``Membership is the most crucial area for the AMA,'' the financial report said, acknowledging that the group's effectiveness and success depends on rebuilding its ranks.The AMA formed an advisory committee after last year's annual meeting to address the problem, and gained insight into possible remedies from a doctors' survey the committee conducted at the AMA's winter meeting in Orlando.Comments included complaints about high dues - ranging from $420 annually for regular members to $20 for medical students. But one respondent told the group the ``biggest issue in AMA membership deterioration is public perception that AMA has become a trade union interested primarily in MD income. Many physicians would return to membership if widespread perceptions become that AMA is really 'physicians dedicated to the health of America.'''Alternative dues packages for residents and fellows and outreach programs targeting young doctors, residents and even pre-med students are among solutions the AMA has implemented or is considering, the committee said in a report to be presented at the meeting.Other proposals at the meeting include:* urging the AMA to officially recommend a low-salt diet to all Americans, even those without high blood pressure, ``as an effective means of preventing the development of hypertension.''* calling for a ban on prescription drug ads to the public to decrease drug costs and improve doctor-patient relationships.* calling for the AMA to lobby for mandatory alcoholism screening for all drunken-driving offenders.The health of the AMA-sponsored union, Physicians for Responsible Negotiation, also will be discussed in light of a recent Supreme Court decision preventing private-hospital doctors from organizing if they have supervisory duties.On the Net:American Medical Association http://www.ama-assn.org Source: Associated PressAuthor: Lindsey Tanner, AP Medical Writer Published: June 16, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Associated PressMedicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmCannabisNew Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #13 posted by lookinside on June 20, 2001 at 17:08:29 PT: frances: bogus email addy Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 14:48:15 PDT [Show full headers]From: "Mail Delivery Subsystem" [Addto Address Book]To: lookinside excite.comSubject: Returned mail: User unknownThe original message was received at Wed, 20 Jun 200117:47:52 -0400 (EDT)from bucky-rwcmex.excite.com [198.3.99.218]*** ATTENTION ***Your e-mail is being returned to you because there was aproblem with itsdelivery. The address which was undeliverable is listed inthe sectionlabeled: "----- The following addresses had permanent fatalerrors -----".The reason your mail is being returned to you is listed inthe sectionlabeled: "----- Transcript of Session Follows -----".The line beginning with "your e-mail couldnot be delivered. The next line contains a second errormessage which is ageneral translation for other e-mail servers.Please direct further questions regarding this message toyour e-mailadministrator.--AOL Postmaster ----- The following addresses had permanent fatal errors ----- ----- Transcript of session follows -----... while talking to air-xd02.mail.aol.com.:>>> RCPT To:550 ... User unknownReporting-MTA: dns; rly-xd02.mx.aol.comArrival-Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 17:47:52 -0400 (EDT)Final-Recipient: RFC822; kamika aol.comAction: failedStatus: 2.0.0Remote-MTA: DNS; air-xd02.mail.aol.comDiagnostic-Code: SMTP; 250 OKLast-Attempt-Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 17:48:15 -0400 (EDT)Forwarded Message:Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 14:42:39 -0700 (PDT)From: lookinside excite.comTo: kamika aol.comSubject: lonliness...hello, frances... i'm just writing to encourage you to take a hard look atyourself...theimpression i get is that you are lonely and have no one tolisten to you...your posts on cannabisnews.com are repetitive andunresponsive to questionsand comments pointed at them (your posts...)try doing a little research on subjects that support yourpoint ofview...that way you might contribute something instead offorcing us to makeyou appear merely foolish...my wife is a medical marijuana patient as i've mentionedhundreds of timesin many sites...the medications that marijuana replaced weredestroying herliver, and did destroy her gallbladder..(medical fact)...if your level of compassion is so low as to deny peoplemedicine that WORKS,your place is waiting for you in hell... sincerely, "lookinside"_______________________________________________________Send a cool gift with your E-Cardhttp://www.bluemountain.com/giftcenter/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by lookinside on June 20, 2001 at 14:32:11 PT: frances: (last i heard anyways) that would be about 1953? you have your head in the sand,frances...you obviously have lost the ability to read andUNDERSTAND what is in front of you...the last person i met who continued to take a rediculousstand like yours, frances, was a terminal stage(wethead)alcoholic...the lights were on but nobody was home... [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by Ethan Russo, MD on June 20, 2001 at 13:41:13 PT: Wrong Again Frances, frankly I have tried very hard not to respond to your posts. I have been very tempted to slam your ignorance, indifference and failure to respond to questions lobbed your way. Once more, you are flat out wrong. Holland has a Ministry of Medicinal Cannabis and active plans for expansion of the process. Dutch doctors recommend cannabis for appropriate conditions much as their colleagues in other countries.Frances, if you continue to spend time here, I hope that some of the good information that you are receiving will make an impression, and that you will demostrate the ability to learn and to change. That is what distinguishes humans from the rest of the animal pack. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by frances on June 20, 2001 at 13:27:25 PT: pot cigs rx What country in the world authorizes a CIGARETTE, BONG, & BROWNIE for medicine?Even the NETHERLANDS doesn't - even the do-drugs DUTCH doctors don't (last I heard, anyways). [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by Rambler on June 19, 2001 at 05:24:21 PT Frances,Here's the good,kind,and gentle,caring, innocent FDA and what they have deemed safe for your kid. Adderall: The new wonder drug for Attention Deficit Disorder Ingredients: Amphetamine Asparate - 25% Amphetamine Sulfate - 25% Dextroamphetamine Saccharate - 25% Dextroamphetamine Sulfate - 25% Before being prescribed for children, Adderall was prescribed as an appetite suppressant for the dangerously obese. Ritalin: What the studies really show The unwanted side effects are (commonly) problems with eating and sleeping, possible negative effects on cognition (diminished creativity) and self-image, and rare or disputable increases in motor or verbal tics. There is no long term evidence of improvement of children taking Ritalin. No improvement in academic outcome can be attributed solely to its effects, no decrease in anti-social behavior or arrest rates, and only small effects on learning and achievement. There exist no neurological, physiological, or biochemical means to predict or determine response to Ritalin. Ritalin does not improve complex skills such as reading, athletic ability, and social behavior. Grades may improve, but Ritalin cannot correct a learning disability...Ritalin does not improve significant emotional problems. Source: James M. Swanson, Keith McBurnett, et. al. "Effect of Stimulant Medication on Children with Attention Deficit Disorder: A 'Review of Reviews'" Exceptional Children, vol. 60 (1993), pp. 154-61 In 1968, Sweden banned the use of Ritalin because of potential for abuse of the drug. In 1971, the World Health Organization concluded that Ritalin, amphetamine (chief ingredient in Adderall), and methamphetamine were pharmacologically similar among themselves and to cocaine in their abuse patterns. Novartis (Ciba), the manufacturer of Ritalin, through a front group it subsidizes, CH.A.D.D. (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder), lobbied the DEA to reclassify the drug from a Schedule II to a Schedule III. CH.A.D.D. claimed that Ritalin was "a beneficial and relatively benign medication.". The International Narcotics Review Board: "Methylphenidate (Ritalin), due to its high abuse potential, was one of the first substances to be placed under international control in Shedule II (along with morphine, opium, heroin, cocaine, and barbituates)"How can you explain or defend the FDA?????? WAKE UP FRANCES!!!! Things are not the way you seem to think they are.The FDA is not some groupof kind old country doctors,who are trying to protect us from stuff that isbad for us!!!!! They are a crooked bunch of bought and paid for administrativepuppets,who are in bed with the giants of the Pharm. corp billionaires .I'd give my kid a big ol' smoulderin' stinky reefer of all natural,organic,Godgiven Marijuana,long before I would give him some "FDA approved","snake oil"Put that in your pipe and smoke it! [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by frances on June 19, 2001 at 03:57:08 PT: pot cigs rx What doctor would (having REALLY analyzed it) prescribe marijuana cigarettes, bowls, bongs, and brownie?None of which are authorized by the FDA.Sucking on a "medical" marijuana joint, bowl or bong, -- or munching on a marijuana brownie sounds like snake oil medicine to me.The warning could say: "When taken as directed, this "medicine" could cause cancer, emphysema, or weaken your immune system." [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by lookinside on June 17, 2001 at 22:28:13 PT: frances... smoking is merely the delivery system of choice because itprovides a way to regulate the intake of marijuana to suitthe patient...marinol is MUCH more difficult to regulate...is injection a preferable method with it's inherent risk ofinfection? i think not...yet doctors worldwide use theneedle because it is effective...effectiveness is the way wejudge medicines and their delivery systems..smoking is thebest way to deliver cannabis...as usual you've proven you came to a gun fight with a knifein hand...please keep on posting...we'll have MANDITORY druguse in 5 years... [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by Rambler on June 17, 2001 at 21:20:04 PT Cigarette? Hey Frances,smoking isnt the only way.Think about it,if you prefer to eat it,thenyou should be able to.Eating it has nothing todo with smoking it. It is even availiable in other forms that may interest you.I heardthat they have developed in a suppository.Would you be as mad and concerned about thisif people only administered it via their butts? But I guess maybe the False Drug Administration,FDA,would find out it was harmful to somesphyctological complication among heavy users.After all,the FDA only has the best interests of thepublic as their top priority! Yup "Straight and Narrow",That's what they say about the FDA.They are said to beone of the most honest,and influence free parts of thegovernment. Now I know you'll hear some say thatbig pharm. companys influence the FDA,that's justa bunch of malarky spread around by those gentle tokers,who are just upset because they cant have their pot. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by Frances on June 17, 2001 at 20:40:26 PT: pot cigs rx - where I would draw the line I would draw the line at FDA approval for any substance as a medicine.I ask you again: "A CIGARETTE as MEDICINE?" [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by Rambler on June 17, 2001 at 08:15:19 PT Where would you draw the line Frances? Frances,let's imagine that you were the person in charge ofwhat substances the government allowed as being safe andlegal for Americans to use.You are the the one in total control.OK,I imagine you would start by outlawing tobacco and liquor,andof course you would maintain the current "illegal" drugs,as theyare.So now,what would you do next?You have your work cut out for you.You might consider outlawing other drugs,and perhaps takea closer look at caffeine.Then,you might do well to look into theworld of foods.Bacon abusers have a much higher rate of heartattacks than non-bacon users.You would have to set up a comitteeto look into the possibility of outlawing doughnuts,and deep fatfried foods.In other words,let's say you are right,and the government should beallowed to outlaw the herb known as Marijuana,what is the next thingwe should allow our politicians to outlaw?Would it not follow thatthe government should then be able to dictate more things that it deemsunhealthy?Do you want to live in a world where someone else gets to tell you whatis good or bad for you?Do you think people are such idiots,that they needthe government to dictate what you do with your own body,in your own home? [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Frances on June 17, 2001 at 07:05:36 PT: liability The AMA might take the plight of the cigarette companies TO HEART and regard their present plight as a "cautionary tale" - i.e., being sued billions for making people sick with their cigarettes, saying all along, "We didn't know cigarettes could make people sick."Giving marijuana cigarettes as medicine is just such a "caution." Marijuana cigarettes have most of the same carcinogens and other toxins and tars (4 times as much tar) as do tobacco cigarettes.Doctors are going to recommend/precribe CIGARETTES AS MEDICINE?????!!!!!I can see it now - a bank of doctors sitting in congressional hearings (recall tobacco CEOs)saying under oath - "We didn't know cigarettes would cause cancer." [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Dan B on June 16, 2001 at 14:11:12 PT: Interesting to see the motives here: One might think that an organization like the American Medical Association would be in the business of doing things that make life healthier for everyone. Think again.The American Medical Association's number one goal is not a healthier America, nor is it to provide sound medical advice to doctors, nor is it to effect sound health-related policy for the greater good. No, the main goal of the American Medical Association is to attract and retain dues-paying members, and the AMA will trample on the health and lives of everyone if doing so means that the AMA might look politically correct enough to attract more members. I'm with you, MikeEEEEE; this is pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.Dan B [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by MikeEEEEE on June 16, 2001 at 12:25:34 PT Whimps These guys are whimps, example:[Desperately seeking to attract new members, the AMA is more likely than ever to stick to middle ground, Hara said.] [ Post Comment ] Post Comment