POT: MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAWS NEEDS REFORM

Re: "Drug laws should matter, even with pot" (editorial, 3-30).

The editorial criticizing "quasi-commercial marijuana dispensaries"
operated in residential neighborhoods highlights the need to reform
Washington's medical marijuana law.

The law says physicians can authorize patients with terminal and
debilitating medical conditions to engage in the medical use of
cannabis, but it provides no guidance on how to obtain it.

It is impractical to expect very sick people to grow their own
gardens -- assuming they know where to find seeds or cuttings. It is
undesirable to force them or their loved ones into the black market
to seek out marijuana of unknown origin.

The answer is a well-regulated system of state-licensed producers and
dispensers. Other states have already implemented this sensible
solution. Our state Legislature and agencies should do the same.

ALISON HOLCOMB; Seattle