MEDICINAL POT USERS: ARE STATE ID CARDS NEXT?

Nevada County supervisors are considering adopting a state program
that allows people who use marijuana for medicine to volunteer their
personal information to a state data bank in exchange for an
identification card.

Those in favor of the program say it could benefit local law
enforcement by making it easier to document who has a doctor's
recommendation.

It could also set some patients' minds at ease to carry a validated
card in their wallet when transporting the medicine by vehicle.

I think, for people, it feels more official," said Jeff Brown,
director of Nevada County's Health and Human Services Agency.

Others, including a Grass Valley doctor, say such an ID card is
discriminatory and chips away at a patient's privacy rights.

That's something we've really worked hard to protect," said Dr. Sean
Devlin, a physician from Highland Springs Wellness Center in Grass
Valley.

A host of professionals, from teachers to judges, who regularly seek a
recommendation for medical marijuana at the office would be exposed,
he added.

I think it's just another step toward control," Devlin
said.

In 2003, SB 420 was enacted requiring the California Department of
Public Health to operate a State Medical Marijuana Program. Medical
use of marijuana became legal in 1996, when California voters passed
Proposition 215.

The ID program allows qualified patients to apply for and receive
identification cards through their public health department.
Information about the patient is sent to and stored at a state data
bank.

Even though the program is voluntary, Devlin fears it is the first
step to establishing mandatory cards for all medicinal cannabis users.

My concern is the cascade effect," Devlin said.

He questions establishing a system for one group of patients while
others who use opiate-based drugs go without any type of scrutiny.

Of all (doctor recommended) medicines, the only one being focused on
is medicinal cannabis because it's a hot button issue," Devlin said.

So far, the cards have been unpopular statewide, Brown
said.

In Orange County, with a population of 3 million people, only 100
cards were issued last year, Brown said.

Sierra County has issued zero cards even though the program has been
in place for a year now, Brown said. Only two people have shown
interest in cards in Nevada County, he added.

We anticipate a demand of less than 20 cards each year," Brown said in
his staff report to the Board of Supervisors.

Slowed by pending legal challenges, Nevada County postponed adopting
the program until a settlement was reached late last fall. To date, 48
of 58 California counties have implemented the program.

If approved by supervisors at their meeting this week, the program
could begin as soon as next month. The fee for a card would be $130.
For lower-income patients eligible for Med-Cal, the cost would be $64.

The meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the Board of Supervisors
chambers at the Eric Rood Administrative Center, 950 Maidu Ave. in
Nevada City.

For more information, contact the county public health department at
265-1450.