Medical-Marijuana User: Patient Protection Needed

EAST PROVIDENCE - Kenneth J. Berube was one of the first patients who
was approved for the state's medical-marijuana program, to deal with
an anxiety disorder and other ailments that have prohibited him from
working.

But the issuance of the license that allows him to legally smoke
marijuana has brought a host of unexpected problems.

Over the past 3 1/2 years, Berube has gone through eight caregivers,
or licensed suppliers of marijuana, and he suspects that some of them
are illegally dealing the drug. He said that he knew all of them and
dropped them after he had disputes with them over increases in the
price of marijuana.

He has learned that at least two caregivers, including one who once
supplied him with marijuana, have forged his name on license
applications and, as a result, have been approved to grow marijuana
for medicinal purposes. Berube said that he hasn't seen any of the
marijuana that's supposed to be coming his way, and he believes the
caregivers are using and/or selling the drug for profit.

"I feel it's a form of patient abuse," said Berube, 44, who lives in
Parkway Towers in East Providence. "There's no protection for the
patients and no guidelines to deal with the shady providers."

Berube said that he met twice with a state trooper at the Lincoln
barracks in March and told him about the forged signatures. He has yet
to hear what, if anything, the state police are going to do about it.

David S. Neill, commander of the state police detective division, said
that he was not aware of the complaint, but he vowed that it would be
turned over to the department's narcotics division for a possible
criminal investigation.

"I think this is one of the problems with the [Health Department's]
system," Neill said. "There are just a lot of unanswered issues."

Neill and ranking officers in the Providence Police Department have
been highly critical of the program because they believe that there
are too many loopholes that allow criminals to take advantage of the
Health Department's nonexistent enforcement of the law.

The Health Department has no one to check on the caregivers'
marijuana-growing operations.

Furthermore, law-enforcement officials say, the program is shrouded in
secrecy and they are not provided with the names of the licensed
patients or caregivers.

Annemarie Beardsworth, Health Department spokeswoman, provided data
showing that the number of licensed patients and caregivers have
tripled in the past two years. Today, there are 1,562 patients and
1,240 caregivers, while, on Dec. 30, 2008, there were 561 patients and
458 caregivers.

She said only two, a patient and a caregiver, have had their licenses
revoked - one for getting arrested and convicted of a crime, and the
second person for growing more than the allowed number of marijuana
plants.

Beardsworth said that the increase in numbers is probably the result
of more publicity surrounding the program and more doctors prescribing
medical marijuana. She said that the surge has led to increased
administrative demands in processing applications and issuing licenses
with photo identifications.

In July 2006, Berube was issued his state identification card to
legally smoke marijuana. The law allows patients with debilitating
medical conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, HIV and chronic
pain to possess up to 12 marijuana plants or the equivalent of 2.5
ounces of marijuana at any one time. They may also select up to two
caregivers to provide the drugs, as long as those caregivers have no
felony drug convictions.

Registered caregivers can possess up to 24 marijuana plants and five
ounces of marijuana for qualifying patients to whom the caregiver is
connected through the state Health Department's registration program.

Berube said that he met several of his past caregivers at meetings
hosted by the Rhode Island Patient Advocacy Coalition. He said that he
has worked out arrangements to have marijuana delivered to his
apartment. He said that he smokes about an ounce to an
ounce-and-a-half each month.

Berube said that in March 2009 he first learned from a clerk at the
Health Department that his name had been forged on a caregiver's
license. He said that he had never heard of the man who had been using
the license for about 10 months. He said that he complained to Health
Department officials but they told him that there was nothing they
could do.

This past March, he learned about a second licensed caregiver who
forged his signature to obtain permission to grow marijuana. Again, he
notified a clerk at the Health Department about the problem.

Berube said that he spoke last week to Charles Alexandre, chief of
health professionals regulation, who oversees the medical-marijuana
program. He said that Alexandre told him that his hands were tied
because Health Department officials have nothing to do with enforcing
the law.

Health Department spokeswoman Beardsworth, citing privacy laws, would
not comment on whether Berube has spoken to Alexandre about the
forgery allegations. Speaking in general terms, she said that
complaints of criminal wrongdoing are referred to the police.