Marijuana effect on kids impacting feds’ response
Posted on | April 18, 2013 | No Comments
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Eric Holder is telling Congress that marijuana’s impact on children is a factor as the Justice Department decides how to respond to two states that have partially legalized the drug.
Holder made the comment Thursday at a House hearing when he was asked about initiatives passed last year by Washington state and Colorado.
Holder says that his department is continuing to review the initiatives, and has not made a decision yet on how to respond. It could sue to block legal pot sales from ever happening, on the grounds that they conflict with federal law.
President Barack Obama has said that going after marijuana users in states where it’s legal is not a priority.
Holder says that Obama hasn’t said he’s for legalization, adding that he isn’t either.
Council seeks counsel on new pot rules
Posted on | April 18, 2013 | No Comments
Douglas continued its pas de deux with medical marijuana rules Monday, postponing acting on two proposed ordinances until city council can meet with legal counsel regarding a pending Michigan Supreme Court case.
City manager Bill LeFevere told council, which April 1 passed the first reading of its new rules, that the court April 3 granted a leave of appeal to hear a case challenging a City of Wyoming medical marijuana ordinance.
The resulting ruling “could be a game-changer for us,” LeFevere said.
Council voted to table acting on both, pending further advice from its lawyer.
State voters in 2008 passed the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act allowing certified patient caregivers to assist as many as five patients and themselves with as many as 12 plants each, despite the fact marijuana remains an illegal drug under federal law.
Dispensaries have sprouted statewide since then. In the meantime, municipalities have been left to regulate local uses, knowing measures they pass could be overruled by local and/or appeals courts and the state, which in turn could be trumped by the federal government.
Douglas, whose voters approved the act by 79 percent, the largest in Allegan County, first addressed the possibility of a medical marijuana facility in summer 2010 when a prospective caregiver broached the subject.
The proposed use didn’t fit any city zoning because the caregiver would be growing, harvesting and processing plants, then dispensing them to approved users.
The zoning board of appeals passed responsibility for developing proper zoning to the planning commission, which drafted rules that allowed caregiver operations in commercial and light industrial districts only, not in homes.
Council, in April and again in November 2012, declined to pass the proposed rules, opting instead for six-month extensions of a medical marijuana moratorium. The latest is set to expire next month.
Douglas is not the lone local government to wrestle with medical marijuana regulations.
After neighboring Saugatuck Township saw two dispensaries open in spring 2010 along Blue Star Highway, its board passed a three-month moratorium on new facilities. Members asked the planning commission for guidelines to oversee sales of the substance.
Township board members, seeking more clarity from the state, later chose not to vote on planners’ suggested ordinance limiting dispensaries to home occupations.
Saugatuck city and Laketown Township do not have medical marijuana ordinances. Rules in other neighbor municipalities run a gamut from home operations to outright bans.
Douglas April 1 approved the first reading of new guidelines governing licensing and locations, noting by doing nothing the city risks being accused of not regulating land use.
One new ordinance would create a medical marijuana overlay district that permits growing operations in commercial zones along Blue Star Highway, mostly south of Center Street, and in light industrial districts on the city’s south side.
The second deals with licensing caregivers and growers for one year, including descriptions of how the applicant plans to keep the substance in a locked and enclosed facility.
Attorney Phil Erickson told city council April 1 that Douglas, in accord with state law, would allow registered primary caregivers to grow medical marijuana for as many as five qualifying patients plus themselves. No dispensaries, a term that implies distribution to more than five patients, would be permitted.
Growing operations would have to be at least 50 feet distant from residential districts; 1,000 feet from schools; and 500 feet from churches, public parks and libraries, and any other caregiver operation. Sites would not be allowed within the city-designated historic area.
Attorney Phil Erickson told Douglas council April 1 there was still pending case law that might bring more clarity, but members could amend the ordinances in the future if needed. Members two weeks later were not so certain.
“I’d like legal advice on what actions are next appropriate,” Eric Smith said
How To Obtain A Medical Marijuana Card In Michigan
Posted on | April 17, 2013 | No Comments
The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA) was approved by voters in November 2008. The Michigan Medical Marihuana Program (MMMP), a function of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, is the government body that administers the program.
To Qualify for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program
•You must be a Michigan resident to be a registered patient in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Program (MMMP)
•You must submit an application form. There is a separate form for minors
•The fee cannot be waived, although it can be reduced under certain circumstances
Your application form, together with your fees, photo id and physician’s attestation to:
Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs
Michigan Medical Marihuana Registry
P.O. Box 30083
Lansing, MI 48909
Qualifying medical conditions for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program
•Cancer
•Glaucoma
•Positive status for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
•Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)
•Hepatitis C
•Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
•Crohn’s disease
•Agitation of Alzheimer’s disease
•Nail patella
•PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)
•Parkinson’s Disease
•A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one of more of the following:
(i) cachexia or wasting syndrome;
(ii) severe and chronic pain;
(iii) severe nausea;
(iv) seizures, including but not limited to those caused by epilepsy; or
(v) severe or persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to, those which are characteristic of multiple sclerosis
•Any other medical condition or treatment for a medical condition adopted by the department by rule
Rules of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program
•The MMMP cannot supply you with seeds or starter plants, or give you advice on how to grow medical marihuana
•Your physician must be a Medical Doctor (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) licensed to practice in Michigan
•You must have an established patient/physician relationship with your “attending physician”
•Other licensed health professionals such as Chiropractors, physician assistants and nurse practitioners cannot sign the documentation
•The MMMP cannot refer you to a physician and does not have a physician referral list
•You, or your designated primary caregiver, may grow your marihuana
•There is no place in the state of Michigan to legally purchase medical marihuana
•The MMMP cannot find a designated primary caregiver for you neither does it keep a referral list of persons who want to be caregivers for patients
•You are not required to list a caregiver unless you are less than 18 years old
•Your caregiver cannot be your physician.
•If you decide to change your caregiver, it is your responsibility to notify him or her that he or she is no longer protected under the law
•The MMMP does not communicate directly with caregivers
•The MMMP will only speak directly with the patient
•All written requests to release information must be signed and dated by the patient
•The MMMP will not accept written or verbal requests for information from your caregiver or any other person without your permission.
•The Act neither protects marihuana plants from seizure nor individuals from prosecution if the federal government chooses to take action against patients or caregivers under the federal Controlled Substances Act
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Posted on | April 17, 2013 | No Comments
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Study: Alcohol, Not Marijuana, Damages Brain White Tissue
Posted on | April 17, 2013 | No Comments
The April issue of the scientific journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Results is scheduled to contain a report analyzing brain scans of teenage alcohol and marijuana users. The results indicate alcohol is highly destructive to the brain’s white matter- but the scans show no negative consequence from cannabis use.
The scans were performed at the beginning of the study and again at the end, 18 months later. Extensive toxicology reports were performed every six months on the study’s 92 adolescent participants. The study evaluated the brain scans only, not intelligence or behavior.
Dr. Tappert, lead researcher on the project, cited the difficulties of studying marijuana on human test subjects. “One reason is that marijuana can really vary. Different strains contain different levels of THC and other marijuana components. For example, some studies have suggested one component, cannabidiol, may actually have neuroprotective effects.”
More details on the upcoming report can be found in an excellent article on Huffington Post. That article contains references to other studies and potential conclusions from the as-yet unpublished data.
Source: The Compassion Chronicles