cannabisnews.com: Michigan Medical Marijuana Law Challenged
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Michigan Medical Marijuana Law Challenged
Posted by CN Staff on March 26, 2012 at 16:32:32 PT
By David Sands
Source: Huffington Post
Michigan -- The sponsor of a state Senate bill in Michigan is looking to outlaw the use of medical marijuana by glaucoma patients. In 2008, voters passed the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, which allows state-registered patients to use the herb to treat certain medical conditions. Senate Bill 977, approved in a state Senate committee last week, would prevent the state licensing agency from issuing medical marijuana cards for glaucoma and remove it from the list of debilitating conditions.
Several studies in the 1970s showed that smoking marijuana could lower interocular pressure for people with glaucoma, according to the "Western Journal of Medicine."State Sen. Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge) sponsored the legislation.“I have met with multiple medical professionals, and not one of them has been able to tell me a benefit of treating glaucoma with medical marijuana,” Jones said in a statement. “In fact, a large problem is that many patients forgo the use of approved treatments such as eye drops and exclusively use medical marijuana which increases their risk for permanent visual loss and blindness,” he continued. The Michigan Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons has also come out against the law."Michigan law has inappropriately included glaucoma as a condition that will benefit from Medical Marijuana," the group stated in a press release, adding that the National Eye Institute and the American Academy of Ophthalmology do not support the practice.Tim Beck, political director of the pro-medical marijuana group Michigan Association of Compassion Centers, disagreed with Jones' assertions.“Used in combination [with prescribed medicine] it’s proven very, very effective," he told City Pulse, a Lansing-based publication. “Anyone silly enough not to use their eye drops, well, maybe there’s something else wrong with them besides glaucoma.”This is not the first time Jones, a former sheriff, has tried to restrict access to medical marijuana. He also sponsored Senate Bill 504, which prohibits marijuana dispensaries from operating within 1,000 feet of a school or place of worship, and Senate Bill 505, which prohibits convicted felons from legally selling the herb. Matthew Abel is the executive director of the Michigan chapter of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and the campaign director of Committee for a Safer Michigan, a group trying to legalize marijuana in Michigan by a ballot initiative.He told The Huffington Post that Sen. Jones was less motivated by health concerns than by his conservative agenda. "I think Senator Jones is completely opposed to medical marijuana law and is attempting to chip away at it by any means necessary," he said, though he doubted Jones' ability to sell the bill to his colleagues. "Nobody I've talked to in the legislature expects his bills to pass." Source: Huffington Post (NY)Author: David SandsPublished: March 26, 2012Copyright: 2012 HuffingtonPost.com, LLC Contact: scoop huffingtonpost.comWebsite: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/tOKjkTxiCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
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Comment #3 posted by Storm Crow on March 27, 2012 at 22:42:48 PT
Senator Jones should be talking to Elvy Musikka! 
“I have met with multiple medical professionals, and not one of them has been able to tell me a benefit of treating glaucoma with medical marijuana,” He needs to talk with Elvy Musikka! Get the information from an actual glaucoma patient! Elvy has already lost the sight in one eye due to modern medical practices for glaucoma! She is preserving the sight in the other with cannabis! More about Elvy (a very sweet lady that I have had the honor of meeting)http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-09-28/us-marijuana-supply/50581346/1
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Comment #2 posted by museman on March 27, 2012 at 17:27:05 PT
I think
juztbudz nailed it.Not much point in continuing to believe these government seat-warmers are going to come clean on anything, unless there is some money, property, or political power in it for them.If anyone wants to know anything about cannabis, don't ask a politician, lawyer, judge, cop, or anyone who works for them; they are the 'gateway to the ludicrous' and other emotional, spiritual substance abuse -including abuses of a vast array of truly innocent people who just wanted to feel good for a moment.LEGALIZE FREEDOM
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Comment #1 posted by juztbudz on March 27, 2012 at 10:02:34 PT:
Time to legalize cannabis
I am a cannabis activist here in Michigan and have been involved with the movement for a long time, we have never suggested to anyone that they drop their regular medicines addressing their diseases. I have talked to, literally, thousands of patients throughout Michigan and have not heard of a single patient who went blind by not using their medicine while treating glaucoma with cannabis. I wish that anyone who has run into this type of problem would step forward and make their story known, but, don't believe that anyone can or will do so. These doctors are quite likely paid by the pharmaceutical companies to lie about the facts involved, IMHO. It has become apparent that the state officials who are in charge of this program are unwilling to fully initiate this "medical marijuana" program and this is just another ploy to delay full implementation of the program. That is why we are now attempting to gather the signatures necessary to fully legalize cannabis for all over the age of 21. If you live in Michigan and are a registered voter please find out where to sign our petitions to make cannabis legal. Thank you! 'juztbudz'
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