WOMAN TO GET STATE'S FIRST MEDICAL MARIJUANA PERMIT

PORTLAND, Ore. - A Portland woman with multiple sclerosis will
be the first to obtain a state-issued medical marijuana permit card.

Janelle Bluhm will receive the registration card, which costs patients
$150, Friday morning in the lobby of the Oregon Health Division in
Portland.

Supporters say Oregon's law, which voters approved last November,
gives doctors clear guidelines on when to prescribe the drug to
seriously ill patients.

Dr. Rick Bayer, chief petitioner for Measure 67, will appear with
Bluhm at a news conference after she receives her permit.

Under the six-month-old law, Oregonians can use marijuana to relieve
symptoms of such debilitating diseases as cancer and AIDS, and to
alleviate the nausea of chemotherapy.

To be eligible, patients must have a note from a doctor proving they
have been diagnosed with a medical condition that might be eased by
marijuana.

It's still a crime to buy or sell marijuana. The only legal way for
medicinal marijuana users to obtain the drug is for someone to give it
to them for free.