MARIJUANA USE RULES SPELLED OUT

The state health department expects about 800 Coloradans to participate in
a medical marijuana program in its first year and twice that number the
next year.

The program begins June 1. It has been in the works since voters approved
Amendment 20 in November. The ballot initiative creates a state registry of
patients who are allowed to use marijuana for medical purposes.

It establishes where they can take their meds: Lighting up at work or in
public is a no-no.

And insurance companies won't be reimbursing anyone for the cost of pot.

The state House this week passed a bill establishing the program and
guidelines and setting up penalties for those who abuse it, including
misstating a medical condition or releasing information about the registry.

"I didn't support Amendment 20, but it's here and we have to make the
program as tight as possible to prevent problems," said Rep. Mark Cloer,
R-Colorado Springs, who sponsored HB 1371.

The state is working closely with Oregon, which in 1999 passed a nearly
identical initiative, said Dr. Richard Hoffman, Colorado epidemiologist and
chief medical officer.

"They do have some experience we don't have," he said.

Colorado based its estimate of participants on Oregon's response, Hoffman said.

The program will be run by the Colorado Public Health and Environment
Department. Here's how it will work:

Patients with a serious or chronic illness must get a letter from their
doctor saying they could benefit from marijuana. Qualifying medical
conditions include cancer, glaucoma, AIDS, HIV, or some neurological and
movement disorders such as multiple sclerosis.

The patient mails that letter to the state health department, along with a
$140 nonrefundable fee. An employee assigned to handle the registry will
verify the letter by calling the doctor, and if that checks out, the
patient will receive an identification card in the mail.

The ID card is 3 inches by 8 inches and can be folded in thirds to fit into
a wallet, said state registrar Carol Garrett. It will include information
about the patient or caregiver, such as date of birth and address.

The cards will be printed on bank-note quality paper that is difficult to copy.

"Even if you use a good color copier, the word 'void' will appear, the same
with our birth certificates or death certificates," Garrett said.

The cards also will include an issue and expiration date. They will be good
for only one year. Patients will have to pay for a card annually. The fee
is expected to cover the cost of the program.

Patients on the registry can legally possess up to 2 ounces of marijuana,
six marijuana plants, three flowering, and paraphernalia.

It will still be illegal to buy marijuana, even for ID card holders. The
amendment doesn't address that paradox, which Hoffman called one of its flaws.

Amendment 20 does address other issues: Patients can't smoke it at work or
in public. Anyone under 18 must receive letters from two doctors and
written consent from a parent living in Colorado.

A patient must annually apply to be on the registry.

One concern of lawmakers is keeping that information confidential. Cloer's
bill makes it a class 1 misdemeanor to release that information.

It also is a class 1 misdemeanor to misrepresent a medical condition to a
doctor; to misuse or steal an ID card; or tamper with or make counterfeit cards.