MEDICAL MARIJUANA RESEARCH FRUSTRATED

To the editor:

The guest column by Carolyn Short and Ed Gogek, "The real story on
medical marijuana" makes the assertion that the medical marijuana
initiative on the ballot for November is a ploy for legalization of
drugs; this is not true. This initiative is about giving people who
are in pain the medicine they need to improve their quality of life.
But in order for doctors to effectively choose the best treatment for
their patients, there needs to be an increase in medical marijuana
research.

Unfortunately, the marijuana for these studies is not easily
accessible to researchers due to a government monopoly over supply
(through the National Institute on Drug Abuse), which has resulted in
excessive red tape and an undiversified, low-quality stock of cannabis
not viable for current research. These political factors do not
encourage scientists to invest in medical marijuana-related studies,
therefore there needs to be another DEA-licensed provider of marijuana
outside of NIDA.

If we can increase the amount of data available on this issue it will
help transition the debate from political bickering into science fact.

STEPHEN MORSEMAN

Flagstaff