MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Your Sept. 22 article, "Poll shows support for medical marijuana" contains
factual errors which must be corrected.

The article said The Maine Medical Association last week voted to oppose
the referendum because it was so vague and the ballot question asks if
voters support the use of marijuana to treat specific illnesses without
defining what those illnesses are.

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

The fact is the Maine Medical Marijuana initiative is very specific in
listing the diseases covered. The act specifically lists the following
medical conditions as the only conditions covered by the act:

1. Persistent nausea, vomiting, wasting syndrome of loss of appetite as a
result of: acquired immune deficiency syndrome or the treatment thereof; or
chemotherapy or radiation therapy used to treat cancer;

2. Heightened intraocular pressure as a result of glaucoma;

3. Seizures associated with a chronic, debilitating disease, such as
epilepsy; or

4. Persistent muscle spasms associated with chronic, debilitating disease,
such as multiple sclerosis.

The list may be broader than the Maine Medical Association supports, but it
is not vague.

In fact, the reason the secretary of state certified the specific illnesses
language for the ballot question was because there is a limited list of
conditions clearly laid out in the act.

It is important for your readers to know that the Medical Marijuana Act is
very specific and that each of the specific conditions has reasonable basis
behind it. And that no one with one of the specific conditions qualifies
un-less their doctor agrees it is a reasonable treatment option. The full
text of the act can be read at our Web site: www.mainers.org.

Craig Brown Campaign manager, Mainers for Medical Rights Portland