[420 Girl]

How high is too high? How far should anyone have to go to get a prescription filled? What kind of chronic pain qualifies for relief from a state-grown herb?

The ongoing argument between members of the New Jersey Legislature and Gov. Chris Christie over the state’s postponed medical marijuana law would be fodder for political satire — if not for the fact that thousands of people who want to use a legislatively approved drug therapy are being asked to wait in silence. And in suffering.

In the latest dustup, the Senate voted Monday to tell state health officials to devise a better plan for dispensing medical pot, one that adheres to the legislative intent to make marijuana readily available to those with a certified need.

In his desire to make sure the Garden State doesn’t become the east coast version of “Oaksterdam” — the walk-in pot district of Oakland, Calif. — Christie instructed his administration to draw up rules to keep the lid on legal pot. Health officials proposed a potency limit and no more than four distribution centers in the state. Terminally ill patients would have to show they had exhausted all other treatment options. And the state would not be allowed to expand the number of diseases that qualify for marijuana for two years.

After lawmakers complained, the administration relented on two issues — increasing the number of distribution centers to six and eliminating the requirement to try all other available therapies.

Nonetheless, the Senate voted 22-16 Monday to steer the rule-making back to the program envisioned in the bill passed in January. That includes, some senators argued, not “stepping” on the strength of the plant or limiting the strains that could be cultivated.

This isn’t a matter of enhancing intoxication, it’s a matter of getting relief to people. Different strains have been shown to be better at specific tasks — relieving the pain of multiple sclerosis, restoring the appetites of those in chemotherapy, or allowing for a night’s sleep.

The irony is that we are barraged with ads for many prescription drug therapies — for everything from cholesterol reduction to depression (and watch out for side effects such as heart failure and suicide.) Doctors usually have a varied pillbox from which to choose.

Marijuana — because it has been lumped in with highly addictive drugs and is used recreationally by so many — still carries the worry that any approval for a good use will invariably expand its illegal use. New Jersey is wise not to repeat the example set by California’s nearly open-market system.

Yet Christie’s attempt to restrict the program will fail if the marijuana doesn’t work well, or if it’s hard to obtain, even with a prescription. That’s why lawmakers are pushing back. They’re listening to constituents who may be on borrowed time, and deserve to be treated with humanity. Christie should listen as well.


NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: lehighvalleylive.com
Contact: lehighvalleylive.com
Copyright: 2010 PennLive LLC.
Website: New Jersey's medical marijuana program still needs work


http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...eeds-work.html