[420 Girl]

Colorado's medical marijuana laws have recently come under fire and have created a great deal of confusion and controversy.

On November 7, 2000, 54% of Colorado voters approved Amendment 20 which served to amend the state’s constitution to recognize the medical use of marijuana.

The law took effect on June 1, 2001 and removed state-level criminal penalties on the use, possession and cultivation of marijuana by patients who possess written documentation from their physician affirming that the patient suffers from a debilitating condition and advising that they "might benefit from the medical use of marijuana."

The law established a confidential state-run patient registry that issues identification cards to qualifying patients and covers the following conditions: cachexia, cancer, chronic pain, chronic nervous system disorders, epilepsy (and other disorders characterized by seizures), glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, multiple sclerosis and other disorders characterized by muscle spasticity and nausea. Other conditions are subject to approval by the Colorado Board of Health.

Patients (or their primary caregivers) may legally possess no more than two ounces of usable marijuana, and may cultivate no more than six marijuana plants, however Colorado continues to enforce state law regarding marijuana possession.

Yesterday, according to the Denver Post, medical marijuana advocates made progress when a legislative panel approved a bill creating new dispensary regulations after making several industry-friendly changes.

House Bill 109 would require dispensaries to be licensed with the state, grow 70 percent of the marijuana they sell and be subject to strict operational regulations.

Under the bill, the Department of Public Health and Environment will promulgate new rules related to standards for issuing registry identification cards, documentation for physicians who prescribe medical marijuana, and sanctions for physicians who violate the bill.

One of the bill's sponsors, Representative Tom Massey, R-Poncha Springs, said he disagreed with the removal of local dispensary bans.

"They should be able to say, 'We don't want this in our community,' " Massey said. "We all have realized that, from a practical standpoint, there are 100,000 (medical-marijuana) cards out there, and you can't deal with that in basements and small growing operations," he stated.

The changes made to the bill on Monday are the latest in a strong of victories for Colorado medical marijuana advocates, however there continues to be controversy as recent robberies of growers (in Colorado and Washington) and the possibility of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) obtaining and maintaining lists of medical marijuana patients is a great concern to those seeking to treat their illness with cannabis.

Utah medical marijuana activists from the grassroots organization Legalize Utah are in the process of studying all of the states where the use of medical cannabis is legal in order to learn what has been the most successful and compassionate method of legalization cannabis for medical use.

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...tah-learn.html