MARIJUANA CLUBS TRY VENDING MACHINES

LOS ANGELES - The city that popularized the fast food drive-thru has
a new innovation: 24-hour medical marijuana vending machines.

Patients suffering from chronic pain, loss of appetite and other
ailments that marijuana is said to alleviate can get their pot with a
dose of convenience at the Herbal Nutrition Center, where a large
machine will dole out the drug around the clock.

"Convenient access, lower prices, safety, anonymity," inventor and
owner Vincent Mehdizadeh said, extolling the benefits of the machine.

But federal agents say the invention may need to go.

"Somebody owns [it], it's on a property and somebody fills it," said
DEA Special Agent Jose Martinez. "We'll look into it and see if
they're violating laws."

At least three dispensaries in the city, including two belonging to
Mehdizadeh, have installed vending machines to distribute the drug to
people who carry cards authorizing marijuana use.

Mehdizadeh said it took seven months to develop and patent the black,
armored box, which he calls the "PVM," or prescription vending machine.

The process provides convenience and privacy for users who may
otherwise feel uncomfortable about buying marijuana, Mehdizadeh said.

At the Timothy Leary Medical Dispensary in the San Fernando Valley,
the machine is accessible only during business hours.

"It helps a lot of patients who are in a lot of pain and don't want
to wait around," said Robert Schwartz, a dispensary employee.

A spokesman for a marijuana advocacy group said dispensary owners also benefit.

"It limits the number of workers in the store in the event of a raid,
and it'll make it harder for theft," said Nathan Sands, of The
Compassionate Coalition.

Marijuana use is illegal under federal law, which does not recognize
the medical marijuana laws in California and 11 other states.

How it works

Herbal Nutrition Center's computerized marijuana vending machine
requires fingerprint identification and a prepaid card with a
magnetic stripe. Customers get a bright green envelope with
one-eighth or one-quarter of an ounce of pot. Customers are limited
to an ounce total per week. The one-eighth ounce packet costs about $40.