DOCTOR MAKES CASE FOR POT

SANTA FE -- A New York physician lobbying for changes in New Mexico's
medical marijuana law said Tuesday the issue should not be confused
with other drug policy changes.

"The two should be separated because in some instances people have
felt that medical marijuana is a Trojan horse or some kind of a ploy
to introduce people to marijuana policy reforms," said John Morgan,
professor of pharmacology at City University of New York.

In a news conference at the Capitol, Morgan said the "war on drugs"
has slowed the progress of a medical marijuana campaign started in the
1970s, when about 30 states -- including New Mexico -- allowed the use
of marijuana for medical purposes.

He said the issue has gained momentum in recent years.

"The argument over medical marijuana has tilted clearly toward the
fact that most people favor its use," Morgan said.

A 1978 New Mexico law allows medical marijuana as part of a research
project, but no project has been funded for more than a decade.

Morgan, who has co-written a book on marijuana, is supporting changes
in New Mexico law that would allow doctors to prescribe marijuana to
patients suffering from certain types of illnesses.

Republican Gov. Gary Johnson has called for the change, and Rep. Joe
Thompson, R-Albuquerque, has said he would sponsor such a bill.

Keith Stroup, executive director for the Washington, D.C.-based
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said at the
news conference that public support for medical marijuana is widespread.

"I think our problem has been that legislators are sometimes wary
because they're concerned that people may confuse a vote for medical
marijuana as somehow being soft on drugs," Stroup said.

He contended that people are beginning to distinguish between medical
marijuana and other drug-law changes.

Marijuana is a pain reliever and nausea fighter used to treat cancer,
AIDS and HIV, glaucoma and other diseases, Morgan said.

"Its most widespread use has been to suppress the nausea and vomiting
of cancer patients on chemotherapy," he said.

State health officials estimate that at any given time, between 50 and
100 patients in New Mexico would qualify for medical marijuana.

Stroup said his group also is supporting Johnson's other proposed
drug-law changes, including decriminalizing possession of up to an
ounce of marijuana for personal use.

"Marijuana prohibition is a bad public policy because we're needlessly
destroying the lives and careers of literally hundreds of thousands of
genuinely good citizens for no good reason," Stroup said.

Sen. Cisco McSorley, D-Albuquerque, has said he would sponsor a
marijuana decriminalization bill in the Senate.