DON'T RUSH INTO LEGALIZING MEDICAL MARIJUANA IN IOWA

On Wednesday, the Iowa Board of Pharmacy voted unanimously to
recommend state lawmakers reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug
to a Schedule II. That could lead to Iowans legally using pot for
medicinal purposes. The board also suggested establishing a task
force to implement a medical marijuana program.

The recommendations came on the heels of the release of a Des Moines
Register Iowa Poll, which found 64 percent of Iowans favor allowing
people to use marijuana as medicine. Many Iowans think it makes sense
to allow those suffering from AIDS, cancer or other debilitating
conditions to have access to a drug that may alleviate symptoms.

And it does make sense.

But Iowa lawmakers - and members of any task force - have a lot of
work to do before allowing such use in this state.

Because decriminalizing pot for some sick Iowans extends beyond the
purview of the pharmacy board. It's not just about what's popular
with the public. It isn't as simple as changing the classification of a drug.

Such a change has wide-reaching consequences - for regulators, law
enforcement, city planning and zoning boards, public health officials
and others. Lawmakers need to fully anticipate and understand those
consequences before changing the law.

And they don't need a crystal ball to do that. They need to look at
the 14 other states that already allow the medicinal use of
marijuana. Iowa can learn a lot from them. Did decriminalizing
marijuana for medicinal purposes increase illegal use of the drug?
Who sells it? Who regulates its growth and distribution? Have the
lawmakers in those states needed to revisit the issue to address problems?

One good place to look is Colorado. Residents voted to legalize
marijuana for medicinal use in 2000. Ten years later, the state is
still grappling with regulatory issues. For example, the law doesn't
state where marijuana plants may be grown. Local governments are
trying to figure out how to regulate the location of "medical
marijuana dispensaries." The law requires police to keep alive
marijuana plants they've confiscated until a case is resolved.

Last year, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. announced federal
prosecutors would not dedicate resources to prosecuting "patients
with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with
state laws on medical marijuana." Following that, Colorado saw a
proliferation of marijuana dispensaries.

These are among the realities Iowa lawmakers need to plan for before
taking action on any legislation legalizing marijuana.

In fact, members of the pharmacy board acknowledged the complexities
of this issue. Prior to the vote, they publicly discussed the drug's
potential value versus its potential for abuse. They recognized the
types of problems that have surfaced in states that legalized the
drug for medical use and the need for adequate regulatory controls.

On Wednesday, marijuana proponents cheered after the pharmacy board
vote was taken. Yet they, too, acknowledged there is a lot of work
left to do before the drug is actually available to patients.

And that work includes getting a comprehensive understanding of the
impact of such laws in other states - and how Iowa can avoid problems
in the future.