Medical marijuana

Local research on effects of medicinal use in final stages

I commend The Times for your editorial, "Medical pot gets boos from federal
experts" (Aug. 13), which calls on the research community to "respond
quickly" to the recommendation made by a panel of medical experts of the
National Institutes of Health: that further scientific research be
conducted to evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness of marijuana.

What your readers may be interested in knowing is that Sen. Bob McCaslin
(RSpokane) and I introduced SB 6744 during the 1996 legislative session
which resulted in a $60,000 appropriation directed to the state's Board of
Pharmacy for administrating clinical research under the
controlledsubstance therapeutic program, in statute since 1979.

In fact, the research, to determine the effects of medicinal
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) with patients under a physician's care, is in
the final stages of design and planning. It will be conducted at the
University of Washington under the supervision of Dr. Allan Ellsworth. Dr.
Ellsworth and the Board of Pharmacy are working to get approval from the
Federal Drug Administration for the use of marijuana plants in the study.

The 1996 supplemental budget also included a $70,000 appropriation to
Washington State University for funding of a study to research a
tamperfree means of cultivating, manufacturing and distributing effective
and safe THC plants. Unfortunately, according to its independent reviewers,
the completed study was methodologically flawed and did not meet the
requirements established by the Legislature.

I commend our 1996 Legislature for understanding that pain and suffering
are nonpartisan.
Sen. JEANNE KOHL
DSeattle
email: KOHL_JE@leg.wa.gov