MARIJUANA INITIATIVE REVISITS NOTIONS ABOUT EXISTING LAW

Backers Say Measure 33 Is Needed Because Current Law Is Too Restrictive,
but Foes View It As a Backdoor Step Toward Legalization

The debate over Measure 33, which would make it easier for patients to get
medical marijuana and allow them to have more, turns on whether voters
think Oregon's 6-year-old law works or is needlessly restrictive.

Proponents and opponents worry that the Measure 33 campaign, which hasn't
attracted large amounts of money on either side, might get lost among
higher-profile measures dealing with gay marriage, medical malpractice and
land use.

Proponents say the issue is about access: Because patients can only grow
their own or get it from a caregiver, they say, many are going without.

"Current limits on possession of medical marijuana and plants are so
restrictive that virtually every qualified Oregon patient goes without
medicine at some point," says chief petitioner John Sajo, who heads Voter
Power, an advocacy group for patients. "A law that forces patients to run
out of medicine needs an amendment like Measure 33."

But an unlikely coalition of opponents -- including a chief backer of the
original initiative, the Bush administration, law enforcement officials,
the Libertarian Party and the Oregon Medical Association -- have lined up
against it.

Some see the measure as a "backdoor" effort at legalizing marijuana. But
Libertarians oppose it for the opposite reason, saying it does not go far
enough toward legalization.

"This isn't medicine," says Jennifer de Vallance, spokeswoman for the White
House drug policy office. "This is essentially legalizing drug trafficking
in Oregon."

Oregon is one of nine states where use of medical marijuana is legal. More
than 10,000 Oregonians have cards that allow them to use small amounts of
marijuana for medical reasons. Patients must grow their own plants or find
a caregiver to do it for them.

The Provisions

Some of Measure 33's provisions would: Increase the amount of usable
marijuana cardholders could possess from 3 ounces to 1 pound, and the
allowable number of plants from three to 10. Allow naturopaths and nurse
practitioners to sign a patient's application for a card. Currently, only
medical doctors and osteopaths can do so. Allow designated caregivers to
sell marijuana to 10 registered patients. Current law forbids the sale of
marijuana. Create a network of dispensaries, regulated by the Department of
Human Services, to sell marijuana to patients or caregivers. Dispensaries
would pay as much as 20 percent of their proceeds to finance a state
program allowing poor patients to get the drug for free.

Opponents, including some original backers of the Oregon Medical Marijuana
Act, say those changes are tantamount to legalization and could lead to a
backlash against the program.

The Oregon Medical Association, which stayed neutral on the original law,
opposes Measure 33, saying it makes unfounded claims about the medical use
of marijuana.

Proponents are trying to "use the cloak or shield of medical use to
legalize marijuana," says Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer, a pediatrician in Roseburg
who is president-elect of the state's largest doctors group.

"If people want to have that discussion, let's have it," he says. "But
let's not confuse voters and make them think this is medical."

Sajo, the chief petitioner, says the proposed changes would not legalize
marijuana. "I don't know how you can call it legalization," he says, "when
anyone caught with more than a pound of marijuana -- who isn't authorized
- -- will be committing a felony."

Others Aren't Convinced.

"It's a wolf in sheep's clothing," says Jerry Wade, spokesman for the
Stormy Ray Foundation, founded by and named for a patient who campaigned
for the original law. "Measure 33 would replace Oregon's medical marijuana
program with something that will not work, cannot be implemented and would
endanger the current program."

Many Patients Excluded

In Oregon, patients can apply for medical marijuana to treat "a
debilitating medical condition" such as cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS or any
illness involving severe pain, nausea, weakness, seizures or muscle spasms.
Each application must be signed by a physician; more than 1,400 Oregon
doctors have approved at least one request.

The trouble with the law is that it excludes "the vast majority of
patients," Sajo says.

"Most patients aren't interested in growing their own marijuana or finding
a caregiver to grow it for them," he says. "They would rather go to a
dispensary, much as they do for other drugs at a pharmacy."

Sajo says he envisions at least one dispensary in every populous county,
with perhaps a dozen in the Portland area.

Patients with chronic pain may need as many as 10 marijuana cigarettes a
day, Sajo says. The 3-ounce limit lasts only about 10 days for such
patients, he says.

Nor is it easy to grow marijuana indoors under lights, he says.

"Basically, it takes a spare room," Sajo says. "You can't really jam it
over on the side of the living room, although some have tried that."

For information about the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program, visit
www.dhs.state.or.us/publichealth/mm/index.cfm