# Medical Marijuana Patients Face Difficult Task of Finding Drug



## triprey (Sep 8, 2007)

C&P Cannabis Culture Magazine

[SIZE=+2]*US NM: Medical Marijuana Patients Face Difficult Task  of Finding Drug*[/SIZE] 
by Sue Vorenberg, (04 Sep  2007)  _Albuquerque Tribune New Mexico_
At the center of the labyrinth of  issues around medical marijuana is a snarled garden of Catch-22.   

Certified patients in New Mexico can use it - but they have no way to  legally get it.  

If they have a supply but end up in the hospital,  nurses can't administer the drug because it's against the law.  

Earlier  this year, the Legislature told the Department of Health to find a way to  produce and distribute medical marijuana - but to do so would subject its  employees to federal prosecution.  

Gov.  Bill Richardson told Attorney  General Gary King to support the Department of Health, but to do so would  subject him to removal from office under state law.  

"It's a fairly  complex situation," King said.  

Since the Lynn and Erin Compassionate  Use Act was signed in April, the issues have put the Attorney General's Office  and the Health Department in a bind, said Alfredo Vigil, secretary of the  Department of Health.  

"We're going to continue the certification  process for patients as long as possible, but the whole distribution system -  which was a way we thought we could break new ground - has turned out to be a  total impossibility," Vigil said.  

So far, about 30 people have been  certified to use medical marijuana in New Mexico, and applications are starting  to slow down, Vigil said.  

"We're ending up talking about a pretty small  group of people," Vigil said.  

Personally, King said he thinks the  decision on use of medical marijuana should be left to doctors and patients, but  legally he can't support state efforts to facilitate that process, he said.   

"I can be removed from office if I act as a defense attorney for  anyone," King said.  

Meanwhile, patients say they're glad the state has  legalized their possession of marijuana for medical purposes, but the legal  wrangling has left them wondering how to overcome the Catch-22 of getting the  drug, said Reena Szczepanski, director of Drug Policy Alliance New Mexico.   

"It's a very difficult situation right now," Szczepanski said.  "The  Legislature wanted people to not have to go to drug dealers or grow their own."  

A state-sponsored distribution system would relieve seriously sick and  dying patients from another hassle, Szczepanski said.  

"It's difficult  to grow, difficult to find," Szczepanski said.  "Patients don't want to have to  think, 'Oh my gosh, I have to ask my grandchild where to go and find marijuana.'  " 

Last week, the governor directed the Health Department to continue  planning for a distribution system, even with all the legal headaches.   

But Vigil said he's not sure the problem will be solved unless the  federal government takes action.  

"The only thing that could happen  would be that Congress could consider changing federal law in some shape or form  to allow a medical marijuana production process," Vigil said.   

Richardson wrote a letter to President Bush last week asking him to  exempt the physicians and officials in states that legalize medical marijuana  from federal prosecution.  

"At a time when the scourge of meth is coming  across the border, and cocaine and heroin use continues to ravage our  communities, the federal government should be cracking down on real criminals -  not people who are trying to help those in pain," Richardson said in the  letter.  

But that's not likely in the near future, King said.   

"There seems to be very little clinical evidence that there's  therapeutic utility in smoking marijuana," King said.  "I would think the  medical debate would need to be sharpened up before policy-makers can come up  with new policy." 

For law enforcement, it's good news that the law has  stopped the state from producing marijuana.  The general concern is that  legalizing medical marijuana is just a way for activists to begin the process of  legalizing the substance, said Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White.   

"I've never supported medical marijuana," White said.  "I'm very  sympathetic to the patients - I watched my father die of cancer, and it's the  most difficult thing in the world - but I don't think you have to smoke  marijuana to gain the comfort and relief that's provided by the THC."  

But Szczepanski said the issue of medical marijuana is not about overall  legalization - in the end it comes down to providing relief for a handful of  patients who see the drug as their only option.  

"The reason I was  passionate about working on the medical marijuana bill was seeing the patients  with these heartbreaking stories of being impacted by pain, nausea," Szczepanski  said.  "Really, it's all about helping them." 


[SIZE=-1]_MAP posted-by:  Richard Lake _[/SIZE]






*Pubdate:* Tue, 04 Sep 2007 
*Source:*  Albuquerque Tribune (NM) 
*Copyright:* 2007 The Albuquerque Tribune  
*Contact:* [email protected] 
*Website:* http://www.abqtrib.com/ 
*Details:* http://www.mapinc.org/media/11 
*Author:* Sue Vorenberg  
*Cited:* Attorney General Gary King http://www.ago.state.nm.us/cu/offices.htm 
*Cited:* New  Mexico Department of Health http://www.nmhealth.org/marijuana.html 
*Cited:* Drug  Policy Alliance New Mexico 
http://www.drugpolicy.org/about/stateoffices/newmexico/ 
*Bookmark:* http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)  
*Bookmark:* http://www.mapinc.org/people/Bill+Richardson


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