MARIJUANA CLINIC OPENS IN MARQUETTE

In November 2008, Michigan residents voted yes on Proposition 1,
which made medical marijuana legal in the state. As a result, medical
marijuana clinics have been popping up all over the state, with one
that opened in Marquette this past summer.

Marquette Medical Marijuana Registration Center (MMMRC) practice
administrator Dave Guizzetti said there are many conditions that
could make someone eligible to receive marijuana for medicinal purposes.

"Some are really straight forward: HIV, hepatitis C, glaucoma; but
there are others, nausea, muscle spasms, that could be the result of
a treatment or medical condition," Guizzetti said.

Guizzetti added that a patient who had been taking 18 prescription
pain pills a day had gone down to zero after a year of marijuana use.

"It helps a lot of people to move from chemical poison narcotics to a
natural remedy that seems to alleviate their pain and help them with
their discomfort," Guizzetti said.

To apply for a card, a potential patient need only stop by the MMMRC
to become a registered and then have any medical records detailing an
eligible condition sent to the clinic. Once the records are received
and approved patients may receive their card within one to two
business days. Registering for a card may also be done online.

"A patient can do it right from their computer and never have to come
into the office at all," Guizzetti said. "We draw patients from all
over the U.P., many of whom have serious physical disabilities. It's
difficult for them to get here."

The card costs $300 and is good for a year from the date of issue.
Each subsequent renewal costs $200.

Once the card has been received, the patient can either grow the
marijuana or hire a caregiver to grow it for them. Caregivers are not
required to have a medical marijuana card.

"The requirements for a caregiver is that a person must be 21 years
of age, they cannot have been convicted of a felony involving illegal
drugs, they cannot be a caregiver for more than five patients and
they have to be a Michigan resident," Guizzetti said. "It's really
that simple."

Health Promotion Office (HPO) Specialist Lenny Shible said that as
long as the people receiving the medical marijuana feel that it is
helping them, he won't question it.

"People went through the hoops, did a lot of work to get it approved
so that some (people) can have access to marijuana that they believe
will help them with their ailments, and that's the most important
thing," Shible said.

Shible added that he has concerns with the way the law has been put
together and likened the caregiver's growing of marijuana to that of
prescription drug abuse.

"Medications that are left around the house are subject to being
misappropriated and used in a way that was never intended," Shible
said. "I really think we have to be careful about the access by those
that have not been cleared to use this drug and especially young children."

Shible said that his concerns are more with the system than with the
rights of someone to have access to another mode of relief from a
medical condition.

Dean of Students Christine Greer said students who have obtained a
medical marijuana card are still not permitted to use marijuana on
campus, as NMU follows federal guidelines, which still outlaws
marijuana regardless of whether it's for medicinal purposes.

"We have to follow federal laws or we will lose all our federal
funding, so we have no leeway," Greer said. "Federal law (is) no
drugs on campuses, so we have to follow that."

Greer added that a student who is in possession of a medical
marijuana card but is required by the university to live in the dorms
may want to apply for an exception to live off campus.