Iowa Pharmacy Board open their eyes and ears to the benefits of marijuana,
In early June the Iowa State Pharmacy Board stated that marijuana has no medical benefits. Susan Frey, who chairs the state pharmacy board said there is no truth to marijuana having any medicinal benefits.
Now the Iowa Pharmacy board has relented by announcing a series of public hearings on whether or not marijuana is a schedule 1 drug.Schedule 1 drugs are defined as deadly addictive and with no accepted medical use. For more information follow the Google link or see Iowa’s Quad City Times new article. Iowa is home to one of the federal medical marijuana patients receiving a tin of 300 marijuana joints every month.The federally provided cannabis is handled via the pharmacy network, so it will be very interesting to see what the Iowa Board of Pharmacy says after the hearings.The first hearing is scheduled for August 19th.
The history of cannabis (AKA Marijuana) is rife with medical applications dating from ancient China to the United States prior to the 1937 marijuana prohibition laws. See "The Antique Cannabis book" about about pre-1937 medical cannabis products. It is good to hear that Iowa is open to hearing some of the evidence versus making a silly statement like "there is no truth to marijuana having any medicinal benefits."
The drug war is a huge policy failure. Now the rest of the world is starting to recognize that fact . See the recent Reuters article about Latin America.
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - As an increasingly violent and costly drugs war clogs up prisons with small-time users, some Latin American countries are abandoning hardline U.S. policies on consumption to intensify the fight against major traffickers.
Convinced that the four-decade-old, U.S.-led war on drugs has failed, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico and other countries are relaxing penalties for possession and personal use of small amounts of narcotics.
Critics warn drug abuse and violence will rise if the small-scale consumption of cocaine, marijuana and other drugs is tolerated, but policy makers in much of Latin America argue the new laws will free up resources to go after big traffickers and treat addicts.
The shift away from zero-tolerance policies has picked up pace in the past year and U.S. President Barack Obama's administration has voiced little opposition to the changes. That is a dramatic switch after decades of Washington's resolute opposition to any easing of laws against consumption.
US Senate passes bill to take a look at our Drug War
Written by Phillip S. Smith
Sunday, 24 January 2010 18:02
Webb has been a harsh critic of national drug policies, and has led at least two hearings on the costs associated with current policies. The bill could create an opportunity to shine a harsh light on the negative consequences of the current policies.
An amendment offered by Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) and accepted by the committee stripped out the original bill's lengthy list of negative drug policy "findings" and replaced them with blander language, but left the bill's purpose intact.
Passage out of committee was applauded by sentencing reform advocates. "Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) commends the Senate Judiciary Committee for recognizing that the American criminal justice system needs an overhaul," said Jennifer Seltzer Stitt, FAMM federal legislative affairs director. "Any comprehensive reform of our criminal justice system must include eliminating mandatory minimum laws. One-size-fits-all mandatory drug sentencing laws enacted in the 1980s are responsible for filling prisons with low-level, nonviolent drug offenders, wasting millions in taxpayer dollars, and destroying public trust in the criminal justice system. The National Criminal Justice Commission can help right these wrongs by recommending mandatory sentencing reform."
The bill's prospects are uncertain. It faces a crowded calendar in the Senate and has made little progress in the House.
Marijuana: It's not just for fun: Ohio is getting serious about medical marijuana
Written by Sarah Steimer
Wednesday, 16 December 2009 21:28
Medical marijuana is becoming more accepted in the United States - and may be coming to a state near you. On Oct. 19, the U.S. Justice Department wrote in a memo that prosecuting people who sell or use medical marijuana within state laws was no longer at the top of its priority list. The department said it wants to use its resources as effectively as possible, and chasing after those involved with the drug does not follow those guidelines. The memo went to federal prosecutors in the 14 states that allow the use of medical marijuana. Ohio is not one of those 14 states, but it may be on its way.
A medical marijuana bill is to be introduced at the beginning of 2010, sponsored by state Representative Ken Yuko, said Cher Neufer, treasurer of the North Ohio chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
Neufer said a medical marijuana bill has been introduced twice so far without much luck, but she noted, "How many times did it take to pass the gambling laws?" The answer: three.
Kate Lyman, Yuko's legislative aide, said right now they're using the bill State Senator Tom Roberts introduced - Senate Bill 343 - in 2008 as the basis for the new bill. "We're tweaking it right now," Lyman said. "We're working with interested parties to make it stronger."
Do Ohio Prosecutors really support jailing medical marijuana patients?
Written by Robert Ryan
Saturday, 19 December 2009 16:15
John E. Murphy, (
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614-221-1266) the executive director of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association has said a couple of times that the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association opposes medical marijuana here in Ohio.
Elected officials of all stripes including prosecutors are your representatives. Please contact your local prosecutor and ask them if they really do support putting patients in jail for using medical marijuana. Below is my letter to Joe Deters Hamiliton Counties Prosecutor.
Recently I read a news article where Mr. John Murphy, the executive director of the Ohio Prosecutors Association said they will oppose the medical marijuana bill being introduced by Representative Yuko.
Is that true? Do you support jailing people who are doing the best they can to stay alive or maintain their pain to tolerable levels because they are using marijuana?
I spent the better part of a year in a "Chemical Lazy Boy Lounge" in my struggle with cancer. I was treated with all sorts of drugs to keep my reactions to the harsh drugs at bay. The best substance by far that helped me from the chemical induced nausea was cannabis (AKA marihuana). My wife was scared to death I would be arrested and lose my job, but she was also convinced by what she saw marijuana do for me that is was the right thing for me.
Now even the American Medical Association has backed down from supporting marijuana as a schedule I drug. Along with the AMA there is a whole host of other medical organizations that say the same thing and more.
One last item, earlier in the year the University of Cincinnati ran a state wide poll on this issue where medical marijuana had 73% support among Ohio votes. That was 10 points above what the gambling issue received, even 63% of my fellow republican voter supported it. Please don't suggest putting it on the ballot do not have millions of dollars to run an initiative campaign like the casino owners, nor do most other patients.
Again does the Hamilton County prosecutor's office really oppose a medical marijuana bill here in Ohio?
Rob Ryan
Now it is your turn to write a letter, email or call your local prosecutor. Following is a link to identify your local prosecutor's contact info from the Ohio Prosecutor's Association webpage.
Last Updated on Saturday, 19 December 2009 22:44
Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Hearing:
Written by Derek Rosenzweig
Tuesday, 08 December 2009 16:30
On Wednesday December 2, 2009 was an historic day here in Pennsylvania. For the first time ever, the House of Representatives held a hearing of the Health and Human Services Committee in order to hear testimony on HB 1393, the Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act. You can read my testimony online in PDF format. Thanks to the dozens of patients and advocates who traveled to Harrisburg for the hearing, wrote testimony, or simply spread the word, we had a resounding success educating the HHS committee how marijuana is medicine but jail is not.
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22 Members of the HHS Committee heard testimony from a variety of advocates, patients, and physicians. Advocates who testified in favor of the bill included PA Rep. Mark Cohen, Chris Goldstein and Derek Rosenzweig of PhillyNORML and Pennsylvanians for Medical Marijuana (PA4MMJ), Edward Pane of PA4MMJ, Patrick K. Nightingale Esq. of Pittsburgh NORML and PA4MMJ; Bradley Walter, Charles Rocha, Sandra Crue, John Ray Wilson, and Dr. Denis Petro; Rabbi Eric Cytryn, Brian Gralnik, former Montgomery County Commissioner Ruth Damsker, and Dr. Howard Swidler, MD, Chief of Emergency Medicine at Warren Hospital, all from the Jewish Social Policy Action Network (JSPAN); and Bob Cappecchi of the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).
What's Next?
Medical Marijuana was well represented at this hearing, so well that both chairmen of the committee - Reps. Oliver (D) and Baker (R) - have agreed that more hearings need to be held.
Rep. Benninghoff (R), Rep. Beyer (R), Rep. Seip (D), and Rep. Payton (D) asked very good questions, indicated they are leaning towards supporting the bill, or flat out refuted the opposition during the hearing. It is imperative that we get at least two Republicans as co-sponsors if this bill is to have a chance in the full House of Rep, and gain any traction in the Senate later this year. Current legislators' known positions can be found at Philly Norml Website.
