MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL SENT TO CORZINE

TRENTON - New Jersey is set become the 14th state in the nation to
allow medical use of marijuana, under a bill approved yesterday by
legislators.

Gov. Corzine is expected to sign the bill during his last week in
office. The law, which advocates have worked for years to get passed,
would go into effect six months later.

Last February, the state Senate approved a medical-marijuana bill with
bipartisan support. But after critics raised concerns that the bill
could allow marijuana to become too readily available, sponsors
tightened restrictions.

The Assembly voted in favor of the bill by 48-14, while the Senate
vote was 25-13.

"I don't think we should make criminals out of our very sick and
terminally ill," said Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D., Mercer), a prime
sponsor. "It does not make sense for many of New Jersey's residents to
suffer when there is a viable way to ease their pain."

Gusciora said New Jersey's would be the strictest medical marijuana
law in the nation.

People with "debilitating medical conditions," including severe or
chronic pain, severe nausea or vomiting, cancer or terminal illness,
would be eligible to legally use marijuana, which would be available
through for-profit and nonprofit alternative treatment centers
throughout the state.

Patients would be limited to two ounces of marijuana every 30 days.
Gusciora said the amount was chosen in part because some legislators
objected to higher amounts.

Opponents said the law could be difficult to enforce and could lead to
problems such as more crime.

Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini (R., Monmouth) said the Food and Drug
Administration was better suited than the Legislature to decide which
medicines were safe and effective.

"We are taking the science out of the equation," Angelini said, adding
that the result could be a "lasting negative impact on our children,
communities, and future."

In an emotional news conference yesterday morning before the votes,
about a dozen patients suffering from conditions such as Lou Gehrig's
disease, multiple sclerosis, and muscular dystrophy urged lawmakers to
legalize marijuana for medical uses, saying marijuana gives them
relief that no legal medication - including narcotics such as morphine
- - had provided.

Charles Kwiatkowski said he wants to give his 4-year-old piggyback
rides. Michael Oliveri said he moved from New Jersey to California to
have access to medical marijuana legally. Nancy Fedder said she wanted
to be able to take marijuana to ease the symptoms of her multiple
sclerosis without worrying that she or her daughter, who takes care of
her, could wind up facing prosecution.

Several patients at the news conference objected to the maximum amount
allowed by the proposed legislation, saying it would not be enough to
help some patients and should be a matter left to a physician to decide.

Elise Segal, a nurse from Deptford, said marijuana had helped ease the
muscle spasms and nerve pain from her multiple sclerosis.

Other medications, Segal said, impaired her functioning and affected
her behavior, and often made her sick. She said she started taking
marijuana several years after a friend who works as a hospice nurse
suggested it to her.

The marijuana provided instant relief, Segal said, and allowed her to
sleep.

"I have never been so happy in my life," Segal said, her eyes tearing
up shortly after the Senate vote. "It means I will no longer be a
criminal, and I can reach out to my patients and talk about my
experience with multiple sclerosis."

Among those who lobbied against the bill was David G. Evans, executive
director of the Drug Free Schools Coalition, who objected, among other
things, to a change allowing for-profit entities to dispense
marijuana. He also said regulated medical marijuana would be too expensive.

At a news conference yesterday, Gov.-elect Christopher J. Christie
reiterated that while he supports the idea of medical use of
marijuana, he would like to see tighter restrictions.

"I still think there are some loopholes in the medical marijuana bill
that don't make me completely comfortable," Christie said. Still, he
added that "conceptually I support the idea of medical marijuana for
seriously ill people for pain relief to them; I think that's the
compassionate thing to do."

He characterized medical marijuana in California as being "completely
out of control." Christie said he would prefer to see a strictly
defined list of diseases for which physicians would be permitted to
prescribe marijuana.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in October that federal
authorities would not arrest or prosecute medical-marijuana users and
suppliers who had complied with state laws, an about-face from the
George W. Bush administration's position.

New Jerseyans strongly support medical marijuana, according to polls.
One poll commissioned by the Drug Policy Alliance New Jersey, which
supports medical marijuana, in 2006 found that 86 percent agreed
"seriously ill patients should have access to marijuana for medical
purposes if a physician recommends it."

A Pennsylvania House committee considered a medical marijuana bill for
the first time last month; the Senate has no plans to consider the
bill even if it passes the House.