cannabisnews.com: Patients Push To Legalize MMJ in Illlinois
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Patients Push To Legalize MMJ in Illlinois
Posted by CN Staff on May 10, 2010 at 05:20:28 PT
By Dean Olsen, GateHouse News Service
Source: Journal Star
Illinois -- A few minutes of smoking marijuana give Ana DeVarose hours of relief from the pain and nausea associated with multiple sclerosis so the 22-year-old Springfield woman doesn’t have to take a handful of prescription medicines every day.But because using marijuana, even for medicinal purposes, is illegal in Illinois, the availability of cannabis on the black market can be spotty, its quality and contents often are unknown, and users risk arrest.
“I don’t want to be considered a criminal for something that is healthy for me,” DeVarose said. “I want to be out of pain. I just want myself and other patients to have safe access to this. It has so many beneficial medical effects for the body.”DeVarose is among Illinoisans with chronic health conditions who have spent time lobbying state lawmakers, urging them to let Illinois join 14 other states, including California and New Jersey, that have made “medical marijuana” legal.The Illinois House adjourned Friday before acting on legislation legalizing medical marijuana that has passed the Senate. But advocates say they will continue to push for Senate Bill 1381, which they say contains safeguards to prevent abuse of medical marijuana and criminal involvement in growing and distributing the drug.“We believe you’re putting it in the hands of people interested in being responsible citizens,” said Brian Mueller, director of Chicago-based Illinois Safe Access.But opponents worry that the measure would lead to more illicit marijuana use and say scientific evidence on the benefits of medical marijuana is far from conclusive. ‘Not Good for You’ “There’s a lot of stuff in marijuana that’s not good for you,” said Limey Nargelenas, a lobbyist for the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police.It’s also unclear whether the relief patients claim to receive from marijuana is good for them in the long term, he said.“It’s like people taking meth,” he said. “People feel a lot better after ingesting methamphetamine.”Supporters of the bill say studies published in peer-reviewed journals show that cannabis provides “medicinal relief” to patients with cancer, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and Crone’s disease.But Dr. Eric Larson, a general internist at Seattle’s Group Health Research Institute and co-author of a 1999 Institute of Medicine report on medical marijuana, said the studies are “pretty limited, and they don’t have adequate follow-up. Most of the science is pretty primitive.”Smoking marijuana can damage the lungs, he said, and it would be safer if all of the beneficial chemical compounds in marijuana could be adequately studied and refined into federally approved medicines that could be “delivered safely and not so subject to abuse.”Larson said it’s clear that medical marijuana has benefits, such as easing nausea in certain cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. But research on medical marijuana has been hindered by the federal classification of marijuana as a “completely illegal drug,” he said.States’ efforts to legalize medical marijuana are “not a good way to make public policy,” he said. “I wish the federal government would re-examine its policies.”Advocates say legalization of medical marijuana would pave the way for more research. Possible Vote After Election State Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, said last week that it appeared the Illinois bill was a few votes short of the 60 required for passage in the House. He said he won’t call it for a vote unless he knows ahead of time that the measure will pass.He said he may call for a vote after the November election and before newly elected lawmakers take office in January.Many opponents point to problems in California, where a referendum in 1996 made medical marijuana legal. Lang and other advocates said the Illinois legislation would have much stricter provisions on how medical marijuana would be grown and sold and how patients would qualify for “cards” authorizing them to buy it.“California screwed this up,” Lang said.“What I have to overcome is the basic political calculation that many of my colleagues take,” he said. “Ultimately, this is a health-care bill. It’s not a bill about drugs. I’m here for people’s health care and pain. We should do this controlled piece of legislation … to help people.”DeVarose, a former server in a restaurant who is single and unemployed, first experienced MS symptoms in 2008. She discovered in January 2009 that marijuana relieved her extreme nausea, as well as muscle spasms and shooting pains in her face and arms.“It would instantly calm my stomach,” she said. “This was the only thing keeping the food down.”She said marijuana also helps to alleviate the muscle aches, chills and fever that are side effects of injectable prescription drugs she takes to slow the progression of MS. Not High, Just Normal DeVarose, who is uninsured and receives marijuana from friends who foot the bill for it, said she no longer has to take a variety of prescription pain medicines, one of which caused life-threatening side effects.“I’m not getting a euphoric high,” she said. “I’m just feeling more normal.”Dennis Garland, 61, of Chatham, a former parts manager at a local car dealership who now receives federal disability benefits, said he wants medical marijuana legalized because he smoked it three times to relieve chronic pain in his back, hands and feet, and it “did wonders for me.”“It doesn’t stop the pain. It just stops it from being an uncomfortable situation,” he said, adding that the marijuana was a gift from friends.Garland said he can’t afford the black-market rate for the type of marijuana effective with his pain. It costs $450 to $600 an ounce, he said.The state legislation would allow him to grow marijuana plants, which he said would be more affordable.Garland said he takes morphine by prescription and hates it: “It steals my life away. It turns me into a zombie. I’m lucky I can remember my own name.”Garland has tried to convince Sen. Larry Bomke, R-Springfield, to support medical marijuana. Bomke said his views on the subject have softened somewhat after talking with Garland. Bomke Looks To Law Enforcement However, Bomke still voted against SB 1381. He said he would feel more comfortable voting for the legislation if law enforcement groups supported it. Lang said the Illinois State Police, which had originally opposed the bill, has changed its stance to neutral, but that change couldn’t be confirmed with ISP.DeVarose has been unsuccessful in reaching Rep. Raymond Poe, R-Springfield, who has said he fears legalization would allow medical marijuana to “get into the wrong people’s hands.”DeVarose lives with her grandparents, Karen and Butch DeVarose, who oppose illicit drug use. The couple were against their granddaughter using marijuana for her MS symptoms until they saw the effect on her health.“We are definitely for the medicinal marijuana now,” said Karen DeVarose, 59.Ana DeVarose said lawmakers need to listen to people who have experienced health benefits from smoking or ingesting marijuana.“It’s a matter of opening up the ears and having some compassion for people like me,” she said. “I’m a patient. Please help me.” States That Have Legalized Medical Marijuana The following states have enacted laws that legalized medical marijuana: Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.All 14 states require proof of residency for someone to be considered a “qualifying patient” for medical marijuana use. Home cultivation is not allowed in New Jersey, which is finalizing rules and about to launch its program.Source: ProCon.comOn the web:More information: http://tinyurl.com/y2tyn7g Illinois Legislation Senate Bill 1381 would allow a person to receive a “registry identification card” to use marijuana for medicinal purposes if that person has cancer, glaucoma, the AIDS virus, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Crone’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, nail patella or another “chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition” that produces wasting syndrome, seizures, severe muscle spasms or severe nausea. The Illinois Department of Public Health also could approve other conditions.A patient wanting a card would need written certification from his or her doctor saying the patient would be “likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of cannabis.” The bill would set up a three-year pilot project that could result in several thousand patients having access to medical marijuana.Sources: Illinois General Assembly and Illinois Safe Access.Source: Peoria Journal Star (IL)Author: Dean Olsen, GateHouse News ServicePublished: May 10, 2010Copyright: 2010 Peoria Journal StarContact: forum pjstar.comWebsite: http://www.pjstar.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/XObOZaavCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help
Comment #32 posted by Canis420 on May 11, 2010 at 22:30:02 PT:
# 10
And the war drags on...
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #31 posted by Had Enough on May 10, 2010 at 23:18:01 PT
runruff tunes
Grand Funk Railroad - Inside Looking Out 1969http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x6chChxzV0&feature=relatedQuicksilver Messenger Service - What About Me - Live Audiohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZ-O4HsP_-o&feature=related
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #30 posted by Had Enough on May 10, 2010 at 22:32:29 PT
Freedom...
Paul McCartney-Freedom+Let It Be Concert For New York Cityhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M17qFKXSMiwLyrics...This is my right, a right given by GodTo live a free life, to live in Freedom*We talkin' about FreedomTalkin' bout FreedomI will fight, for the rightTo live in Freedom*Anyone, who wants to take it awayWill have to answer,Cause this is my right*We talkin' about FreedomTalkin' bout FreedomI will fight, for the rightTo live in Freedom, ahyeah, comon now...***the rest http://www.poemhunter.com/song/freedom-2/
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #29 posted by Paint with light on May 10, 2010 at 22:19:16 PT
# 19 freedom for runruff
May 10, 2010....Emancipation Day.Thanks for fighting your battles for the benefit of all of us.You took on the torpedoes and won.Images of Slim Pickens in "How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb(or Dr.Strangelove)" pass through my mind.Enjoy the freedom but always be wary.Legal like alcohol.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #28 posted by runruff on May 10, 2010 at 21:48:07 PT
Iamoverwhelmed!
Thanks you guys, and thanks from Linda, she sends her love as always.Since day one of the fateful visit by my fellow countrymen in uniform, you all have been there. Throughout my struggle with the feds, incarceration and probation, which also included some minor tirades from me. That was about seven years ago now but I started to get to know you all many years before that even....so,... my friends,..thank you!
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #27 posted by Had Enough on May 10, 2010 at 20:59:56 PT
and...
Give your pups a hug and a good scratch behind the ear...Tell them it's from me...People who pet animals...live longer and healthier...
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #26 posted by Had Enough on May 10, 2010 at 20:54:57 PT
runruff
Cool...very cool...Freedom...Let the bell ring...Let it ring loud and clear...very loud and clear...Now you can finally get some peace, and redemption to boot.Now that the chains have been removed, there will be nothing in your way to slow you down.Cool...very cool...This cannabis war WILL end...and we all will have a part in it...I for one, will never give up, as long as I’m able to function properly.Once this insidious ‘Drug War’ is put in its place...many other atrocities put in place by the power trippers will fall right behind it.Peace...and onward through the fog...shining the light...***Say hey to museman (our keeper of the muse) for me...
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #25 posted by ekim on May 10, 2010 at 20:09:50 PT
good going runruff
education is shining light on bullying thank you for being
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #24 posted by Storm Crow on May 10, 2010 at 20:05:06 PT
That is WONDERFUL NEWS!
Don't throw your back out doing cartwheels! Is it just me, or is some sanity beginning to trickle upwards?
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #23 posted by JustGetnBy on May 10, 2010 at 17:06:06 PT:
Freedom
Gongrats for staying the course, took some cojones. My best to Linda and your faithful animal family.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #22 posted by Cheebs1 on May 10, 2010 at 15:12:53 PT:
Congratulations
Woot!!!! Congratulations on your release runruff. I am very happy for you and wish you the best of luck.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #21 posted by FoM on May 10, 2010 at 15:12:53 PT
Runruff
That's wonderful news!
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #20 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 15:05:40 PT
Runruff.
I'm so glad!
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #19 posted by runruff on May 10, 2010 at 15:03:03 PT
Just a report from the front lines!
Today Judge Panner made it offical, I am "cut loose" from probation.Judge Panner is the first person on the bench that I honor.The Assistant Proscecutor is Doug Fong, A serious man but respectful in every way and honorable.I'm Free!
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #18 posted by FoM on May 10, 2010 at 14:49:20 PT
Nic
I never heard that song before. It is a very pretty Gospel song.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #17 posted by BGreen on May 10, 2010 at 14:46:10 PT
re: post #13
Gag me with BS. That washed-up war-monger throws out every lie they've ever used, but the ignorant old bastard even threw in the asinine "Starbucks" reference. Man, they sure stick to their talking points, even when they border on insanity.Somebody tell all of these old brain-dead prohibitionists that Starbucks coffee is now available in every single grocery store in America. That means that no matter how loudly these idiots scream, Starbucks will always be available in more locations than cannabis.If I was Starbucks, I would immediately demand to have their product and trademark protected from this ridiculous prohibitionist tactic before a few million cannabis devotees choose to distance themselves from a company with such a negative association with those who rabidly crave caging innocent people over the cannabis plant.Pick a side, Starbucks. Freedom or jail? What do you want for me? Why should we give you a penny if you allow millions of cannabis users to suffer for nothing more than your own financial success?You know, if they close down the dispensaries, the coffee shops could be next. Cut your own throat at your own risk.The Reverend Bud Green
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #16 posted by Nic on May 10, 2010 at 14:32:48 PT
The First Thing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHqBAzXAhG8
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #15 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 14:05:12 PT
The seed seller.
The legalizer.A big trophy bust for them.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #14 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 14:03:41 PT
Campaign Against Marijuana Planting Conference
Those "Warriors". I wonder if they are going to drag Marc Emery in shackles, as an example of their power, across the conference stage.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #13 posted by FoM on May 10, 2010 at 13:54:30 PT
Press Release From PRNewswire
Former White House Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey Lays Out Case Against Legalizing Marijuana as California Prepares to Vote
***As Featured Speaker, Presents 16-slide detailed analysis to Conference in San DiegoSAN DIEGO, May 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Four-Star General Barry R. McCaffrey (Ret), the former White House "Drug Czar" who was Director of National Drug Control Policy in the Clinton Administration, laid out the case against legalizing marijuana as California prepares to vote on the issue in a referendum. As the featured speaker today at the 2010 National Marijuana Initiative and California Campaign Against Marijuana Planting Conference in San Diego, McCaffrey, now Adjunct Professor at West Point and a media expert on drugs and national security, presented a sixteen-slide detailed analysis.For McCaffrey's full presentation see: http://mccaffreyassociates.com/pages/documents/marijuana-nmicamp.pdfURL: http://drugsense.org/url/4GoLSiZ9
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #12 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 13:23:45 PT
Oh no
Comment 10I so hoped that wouldn't happen.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #11 posted by FoM on May 10, 2010 at 13:17:11 PT
konagold
That's a real shame about Marc Emery.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #10 posted by konagold on May 10, 2010 at 12:59:04 PT
marc Emory extridited
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/05/10/canadian-pot-activist-seed-merchant-ordered-extradited-seattle-face-drug-charge/
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #9 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 12:51:55 PT
OT Just ran on to this supposedly hemp rug
at a main stream decorating center. It appears to be quite pretty.http://www.homedecorators.com/P/Hemp_Area_Rug/
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #8 posted by dongenero on May 10, 2010 at 12:37:22 PT
book on prohibition - npr
Listening to the author interview about Prohibition now on NPR. Fascinating stories about what it was like, how people worked around it, medicinal use, speakeasies, related political issues.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #7 posted by ekim on May 10, 2010 at 12:16:50 PT
great interview of new book on prohibition
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126613316last call the rise and fall of prohibition
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #6 posted by FoM on May 10, 2010 at 11:58:35 PT
Firebomb Thrown at Marijuana Business in Montana
May 10, 2010URL: http://www.kvue.com/news/national/93299654.html
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #5 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 09:58:18 PT
Sam
It is indeed an outstanding article.Very thought provoking.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #4 posted by Sam Adams on May 10, 2010 at 09:31:34 PT
Down Prison Road
this is an outstanding article, this is real investigative journalism: http://www.truthout.org/down-prison-road58908
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #3 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 07:35:37 PT
Cheebs1
What you say is true and it reminded me of something I read last night that I ran into in a comment over at Grits for Breakfast.Transcript: Doublecross: U.S. Customs Embarassed by Smuggling Informanthttp://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98.n546.a05.html
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #2 posted by Hope on May 10, 2010 at 07:16:10 PT
"Far from conclusive"?
"But opponents worry that the measure would lead to more illicit marijuana use and say scientific evidence on the benefits of medical marijuana is far from conclusive."That is a glowing example of prevarication at it's finest.
[ Post Comment ]
Comment #1 posted by Cheebs1 on May 10, 2010 at 05:37:05 PT:
Never Happen
Morning folks :). With politicians quotes like this it clearly shows that there is no compassion in government.
"However, Bomke still voted against SB 1381. He said he would feel more comfortable voting for the legislation if law enforcement groups supported it."The police organizations, and police themselves, will always be against medical marijuana because their funding depends on it. Until these politicians are voted out of office and replaced with honest people that aren't blinded by all the lobbyist money no reform will be possible. The police are the armed gang enforcers of the American Government Cartel. We have been told that the Sinoloa Cartel in Mexico is the largest organized drug cartel but with competition from the United States government I, for one, find that hard to believe.
[ Post Comment ]
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