THE OREGON MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACT - 10 YEARS AFTER

Cannabis or marijuana has been an important herbal medicine used by
many cultures for thousands of years. Though federal law prohibits
use of this herb, 14 states have now passed medical marijuana (mmj)
laws over the last decade. These laws protect more than 20% of all Americans.

The first state to modify criminal penalties was California in 1996.
Oregon voters were close behind, passing the Oregon Medical Marijuana
Act (OMMA) in 1998. Since state laws do not change federal laws,
marijuana remains illegal until Congress changes federal laws or a
new President issues administrative orders.

The Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP), part of the Department
of Human Services (DHS), administers the OMMA. If an Oregonian has a
debilitating condition as defined in the OMMA, s/he applies by having
her/his physician certify the qualifying condition and that mmj
"might help". To learn about the OMMP and the law (ORS
475.300-475.346) go online to the website http://oregon.gov/DHS/ph/ommp/.

Debilitating conditions include cancer, glaucoma, wasting (cachexia)
caused by HIV infection or other conditions, severe pain, severe
nausea, seizures, or persistent muscle spasms like those caused by
multiple sclerosis. The only condition added by DHS since 1998 is
agitation from Alzheimer's disease.

The most commonly reported debilitating condition is severe pain.
Note: our legislature feels doctors are not proficient in controlling
pain. Therefore, the Oregon Medical Board requires as of January 2,
2009 that licensed doctors receive special continuing education on
treating pain and end-of-life care.

OMMP issues a one-year permit to qualified applicants whose
identifying information is entered into a confidential data base at
DHS. The permit allows limited exceptions to state law for growing
and possessing cannabis. Although legal for a patient to pay expenses
related to his/her grower's supplies and utilities, selling cannabis
remains a crime. Since there is no allowance for patients to sell to
each other when growing a garden is not practical, some patients have
limited access to medicine.

The OMMA is not a substitute for reform. Rather, it is a bridge to
the time when the feds reschedule marijuana to allow patients to
purchase it by prescription.

By October 2008, over 20,000 patients had registered with the OMMP.
Adding legitimacy are the 3000 Oregon physicians who participate in
the OMMP. These physicians likely represent the majority of Oregon
doctors who routinely manage patients with terminal and chronic
illness. Perhaps this degree of participation indicates the Oregon
medical community is committed to improving pain and symptom control.

Patient fees pay for administration of OMMP so it never costs
taxpayers a dime. In fact, the OMMP contributed nearly $1 million to
the state General Fund in 2005.

In spite of a poll showing 76% of Oregonians support "seriously ill
patients to use and grow their own medical marijuana with the
approval of their physician", the OMMA still faces opposition from
law enforcement and some politicians. A ballot initiative amending
the OMMA to allow dispensaries to sell mmj failed in 2004. Perhaps
this means Oregonians like the OMMA as is, but do not want commercial
sales to further provoke federal authorities. The federal Drug
Enforcement Agency (DEA) is very nasty about dispensaries in
California, even threatening landlords with property forfeiture if
renting to dispensaries.

Some in Oregon wish to retry a dispensary initiative. My opinion
about amending the OMMA is we need federal changes first. Otherwise,
we will have the DEA repeating the California raids in Oregon.
Rescheduling marijuana so patients can obtain it by prescription
would be ideal. Calling the DEA off their pursuit of medical
marijuana patients--particularly in states where mmj laws
passed--would be a good start.

This 2009 legislative session also challenges the OMMA. In 2007 and
2005, Republicans and Associated Oregon Industries attempted to
codify discrimination against OMMA registrants who work. Some
businesses pursue federal contracts--good business--but then ignore
actual employee impairment, and fire Oregonians simply for being OMMA
registrants--bad business. Oregon law says medical marijuana must be
treated like other medicines. Our legislature, citizens, and courts
have to decide what is fair. Decent people do not discriminate
against the sick and disabled. But, it takes vigilance because some
seek to transform greed into a virtue.

The OMMA is challenged by citizen initiatives too. During Oregon's
2008 election cycle, Kevin Mannix filed an initiative to repeal the
OMMA, but he never collected signatures. With endless money flowing
from Loren Parks to Kevin Mannix, there is potential for a blizzard
of negative ads against the OMMA. There are many businesses including
law enforcement, pharmaceuticals, and drug testing industries that
directly profit from mmj prohibition.

Fourteen states including Oregon, Washington, California, Alaska,
Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Maryland, Montana, Rhode
Island, New Mexico, and most recently, Michigan have mmj legislation.
That is over a quarter of all states and covers, as noted at the
beginning of this article, over 20% of US population. The conflict
between state and federal laws has resulted in a series of court
battles concerning states' rights, medical necessity, and drug policy
enforcement.

Ten years after the OMMA passed, many patients have benefited. All
Oregonians save money by less marijuana prosecutions and a
patient-funded OMMP that contributed to the General Fund. Most
importantly, the OMMA puts Oregon closer to a more humane world where
the sick can access pain and symptom control without the heartless
bludgeon of reefer-madness prohibition.