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Voters to decide on medical marijuana dispensaries

By Rebekah Metzler, Staff Writer
Oct 09, 2009 12:16 am
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Question 5: "Do you want to change the medical marijuana laws to allow treatment of more medical conditions and to create a regulated system of distribution?"
LEWISTON — Medical marijuana is already legal in Maine, but for patients with recommendations from their doctor allowing its use, growing their own is the only legal way to supply themselves. Question five on the Nov. 3 ballot would legalize nonprofit medical marijuana dispensaries, which would be regulated by the Department of Health and Human Services.

According the proposal, DHHS would issue "registry identification cards" to qualified patients and their "designated primary caregivers." The dispensaries would also have to register with the state, and DHHS would be expected to establish application and renewal fees sufficient to pay for oversight and regulation. The initial registration fee would be $5,000, according to the measure.

Though marijuana is illegal under federal law, 14 states have legalized it for patients and others, including California and Colorado, have also legalized dispensaries similar to those proposed in Maine.

Many patients who use marijuana medicinally say it effectively relieves pain and doesn't have the negative side effects found with prescription narcotics.

In February, President Barack Obama said federal officials would stop raiding dispensaries of medical marijuana in states that have authorized them.

Johnathan Leavitt, who heads the Lewiston-based group Maine Citizens for Patients Rights, said this proposal will merely make the medicinal marijuana law already approved by Mainers "workable."

"That law was not particularly well-written so it left a lot of ambiguities and confusion," he said.

Though qualified patients are allowed to grow their own plants now, Leavitt said that's not always possible for people who are going through cancer treatments or are HIV positive considering the amount of time, attention and space needed.

The question has no formal opposition campaigning against it, but recently the Maine Prosecutors Association came out against it. The Baldacci administration is also opposing the measure, according to spokesman David Farmer.

Guy Cousins, director of DHHS' Office of Substance Abuse, and Roy McKinney, director of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, testified against the measure at the legislative public hearing in April.

"This will allow storefront marijuana businesses to possess, cultivate and sell marijuana for medical purposes under the appearance that it is regulated similar to the controlled substances that are dispensed at a pharmacy," McKinney said in his testimony. "Nothing could be further from the truth."

McKinney pointed to California communities with dispensaries that have seen "negative and harmful secondary effects."

He said information from the California Police Chiefs Association lists several consequences of the establishment of the dispensaries, including "marijuana driving under the influence" by people who obtained the drug at a dispensary, patients selling to nonpatients and cases of robbery outside the dispensaries.

But Leavitt said the Maine proposal provides more regulation compared to the California law.

"There's much more oversight in this one, this is going to be a pretty regulated system for distribution; California's tends to be a little bit unregulated," he said.

Maine's proposal prohibits dispensaries from being established within 500 feet of public or private schools, and convicted felons will not be allowed to work at them. The measure also limits the number of plants that can be cultivated, based on the number of patients it is serving and also how many ounces patients can possess at any one time. Local municipalities would also be able to further limit or regulate such dispensaries.

More specific regulations would be determined by DHHS in the rule-making process, Leavitt said.

Asked if he was concerned that regulation of the dispensaries would be left in the hands of those opposed to the proposal, Leavitt said he is going to have "strong expectations" if the question is approved by Maine voters.

"The governor and the DHHS folks, these folks have all been participants in propping up drug policy that's destroying lives and denying patients the right of medicine, so they've got a lot to be accountable for," he said. "I hope they're able to live with themselves."

rmetzler@sunjournal.com

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SurfinGuy772's picture

I think instead of trying to

Submitted by SurfinGuy772 on Sun, 10/11/2009 - 11:47.

I think instead of trying to eradicate a harmless plant, we should be eradicating ignorant hillbillies like Taxpoor that have the brain capacity of a 2 year old.

Foamfollower's picture

Marijuana is the largest

Submitted by Foamfollower on Fri, 10/09/2009 - 17:46.

Marijuana is the largest cash crop in the United States, more valuable than corn and wheat combined. Using conservative price estimates domestic marijuana production has a value of $35.8 billion. The domestic marijuana crop consists of 56.4 million marijuana plants cultivated outdoors worth $31.7 billion and 11.7 million plants cultivated indoors worth $4.1 billion.

The top ten marijuana producing states are California, Tennessee, Kentucky, Hawaii,
Washington, North Carolina, Florida, Alabama., West Virginia, and Oregon. Five states
(California, Tennessee, Kentucky, Hawaii and Washington) had marijuana crops worth over $1 billion.)

Despite intensive eradication efforts domestic marijuana production has increased ten fold over the last 25 years from 1,000 metric tons (2.2 million pounds) in 1981 to 10,000 metric tons (22 million pounds) in 2006, according to federal government estimates.

Marijuana is the top cash crop in 12 states, one of the top 3 cash crops in 30 states, and one of the top 5 cash crops in 39 states. The domestic marijuana crop is larger than Cotton in Alabama, larger than Grapes, Vegetables and Hay combined in California, larger than Peanuts in Georgia, and larger than Tobacco in both South Carolina and North Carolina.

From 2001 to 2005 federal and state eradication programs eradicated an average of 33,033 outdoor cultivation sites per year and an average of 2,701 indoor marijuana grow-rooms per year. From 1982 to 2005 the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program (DCESP) eradicated over 103 million cultivated marijuana plants, an average of 4.3 million cultivated plants a year over this 24 year period.

The ten-fold growth of production over the last 25 years and its proliferation to every part of the country demonstrate that marijuana has become a pervasive and ineradicable part of the national economy. The failure of intensive eradication programs suggests that it is finally time to give serious consideration to marijuana’s legalization in the United States.

Foamfollower's picture

You know what they say if

Submitted by Foamfollower on Fri, 10/09/2009 - 17:30.

You know what they say if you dont like it dont let the door hit you in the...
Many people benefit from the medicinal use of marjuana. Taxpoor once again makes a completely ignorant comment. If the drug is legalized will you use it?? Most likely like me you will not. Not only will this law help otherwise law abiding citizens get the medication they prefer for their ailments(which under law are ailments you or I would have no desire to share) It will aleviate some of the burden on resources such as law enforcement,social workers,probation officers,jails which can most definately be used in a much more positive/efficent way.It is incredibly expensive to keep marijuana illegal.
Nobody knows exactly how much money is spent to enforce anti-marijuana laws because there are so many factors to consider. Some of these factors are listed below.
Cost of keeping marijuana illegal =
cost of active law enforcement +
cost of prosecution (and defense!) of accused offenders +
cost of incarceration of convicted offenders +
hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue that would be generated if drugs were legal and taxed +
cost of foster care and social services for children of incarcerated offenders +
the list goes on and on.

Complain much about your taxes?...

Harvard Economics professor Jeffrey Miron concludes that marijuana legalization would create approximately $14 billion in benefits every year.

The US Marijuana Crop Estimated to Be Worth Over $35 Billion. A new statistical analysis indicates that marijuana is America's most valuable cash crop. If these figures are even close to the truth, a logical system to regulate and tax marijuana would produce billions of dollars in revenue every year. Instead, our government stubbornly insists on keeping marijuana illegal and wasting billions of tax dollars enforcing prohibition.

The US Federal Government Spends More Than $12 Billion Per Year on Drug Control Programs. Federal drug control budgets do not separate spending by drug, so there is not a precise figure available for the amount that is spent on marijuana alone. Also, these figures do not include any spending by state or local governments, which are likely to be substantial since state police, courts, and prisons are constantly busy dealing with marijuana offenses.

Marijuana prohibition does not work!

Taxpoor's picture

Almost everyone and his

Submitted by Taxpoor on Fri, 10/09/2009 - 09:20.

Almost everyone and his brother will be patients who use marijuana for one reason or another. What's this country coming too. Same sex marriage, legalized Dope & Ethanol in our gas. We sure are headed down hill

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