CANADA MIGHT OK MEDICAL MARIJUANA

OTTAWA - Canada's federal government has moved one step closer
to permitting the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

A measure calling for the legalization of pot for medical reasons
passed Tuesday night in the House of Commons.

The bill motion, tabled by an opposition party, calls on the
government to ``take steps immediately'' to develop clinical trials,
guidelines for its use and a safe supply of marijuana for people who
need it for medical reasons.

Victims of AIDS and cancer have been lobbying for years for the right
to use marijuana as a pain killer and appetite stimulant.

In March, Health Minister Allan Rock promised clinical trials into the
medicinal use of marijuana.

In the United States, the Clinton administration released new
guidelines May 21 to ease the availability of marijuana for medical
research, a move officials believe will quicken the pace of studies
into the drug's possible beneficial uses.

The new guidelines, ``an extension of an existing process,'' will make
it easier for academic researchers to obtain samples of research-grade
marijuana grown by the government, said Campbell Gardett, a spokesman
for the Department of Health and Human Services.