NEVADA BALLOT PROPOSAL WOULD ALLOW MEDICAL MARIJUANA USE

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) -- A ballot proposal to allow marijuana use by
Nevadans with serious health problems was filed here Friday -- following a
lawsuit to ensure a lot of money can be spent on the ballot campaign.

The initiative petition was filed by Americans for Medical Rights, which on
Monday had filed suit in federal court, Las Vegas, to void a Nevada limit
of $5,000 per person or organization for ballot question campaigns.

The AMR is the same group that launched a successful 1996 medical marijuana
petition in California. But a big legal battle developed over distribution
through ``cannabis clubs.''

Dan Hart of Las Vegas, who is heading the signature-gathering for the
Nevada initiative, said the problems that occurred in California shouldn't
happen here.

``The way this is worded, once it is passed it will be policed
appropriately,'' Hart said. ``We can all learn from the experience of
California. This is a refined version of what was approved there.''

And even though Nevada's laws against marijuana are much harsher than
California's, Hart predicted the initiative will easily qualify.

``While this state is conservative, it's also fiercely protective of
individual rights,'' he said. ``And this is about an individual who is ill
having the right to use medication that helps with the symptoms of a
disease.''

Hart must collect 46,764 signatures by Aug. 5 to get the proposal on the
ballot. Voters would have to approve the plan this November and again in
November 1990 before the Nevada Constitution could be revised.

Under the plan, marijuana could be used by anyone suffering from cancer,
glaucoma, AIDS, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, or from severe nausea caused
by other ``chronic or debilitating medical conditions.''

A person who wants to use marijuana would have to get a go-ahead from a
doctor, and any use of the drug by a minor would have to be approved in
writing both by a doctor and the minor's parents.

A registry of patients authorized to use marijuana for medical purposes
would be available to police if they needed to verify a claim that it's
being legally used by someone.

A final section says an insurer wouldn't have to reimburse a health care
policyholder for costs of buying marijuana, and an employer wouldn't have
to make accommodations for pot-smoking by sick employees.