CURRENT MEDICAL MARIJUANA REGULATIONS DISCRIMINATE AGAINST NON-SMOKERS

Alternative Methods of Consumption Must Be Allowed

In Canada, the possession of marijuana has been illegal since 1923.
Today there are over 5,000 Canadians with permission from the federal
government to smoke medical marijuana to relieve the pain brought on
to them by their illness. The law does not allow people to consume
marijuana in other forms, not considering and recognizing those who
cannot smoke due to other illnesses like lung cancer.

Samuel Mellace, a 55-year-old pot grower from British Columbia lit a
joint in the House of Commons on Oct. 4 to demonstrate an
inconsistency he sees with the Medical Marijuana Access Regulation.
Mellace and his wife are both authorized medical marijuana users, and
their issue is with the regula-tion that forces them to 'light up' to
relieve their pain. As he told CTV, his wife "can't smoke her
medication, because she has lung cancer."

Mellace, through his actions, was trying to point out the problematic
regulations currently enforced in the MMAR, namely that they are
forced to smoke marijuana and are not allowed to use alternative
methods of consumption. Furthermore, he wanted to suggest that it
could take 10 months, or more, for a medical marijuana renewal to be
processed - and for people suffering from chronic pain, this is a
long time. Mellace and his wife feel that they should not have to
fear going to jail simply because they are applying a marijuana cream
rather than smoking a joint.

It is clear that the laws set by Health Canada conflict with the MMAR
in that they do not protect people who cannot smoke marijuana and
must use alternative forms. This is an issue that needs to be solved
- - and solved quickly. If we accept that medical marijuana is an
effective pain-relieving medication, then we should allow people to
consume the product however they want - whether it is smoking a joint
or eating a cookie. If we allow people to grow marijuana and
distribute it legally to authorized users, then I see no difference
in allowing the distributors to cook it, blend it, or process it in
whichever way to ensure that people who cannot smoke are offered an
alternative form of the substance.

Marijuana is seen as a 'soft drug' to some and a 'hard drug' to
others. The debate over the legalization of it has been going on for
far too long now. It has become stagnant, and the arguments for
either side are now circular. The case here does not suggest to
advocate for the legalization or decriminalization of marijuana for
the general public. Rather, people who suffer from chronic pain and
want to use medical marijuana to relieve their suffering must be able
to do so as desired and needed.

The focus is on the well-being of those who are suffering from pain
caused by illness, accidents or other causes. The current regulations
and laws pertaining to these users' rights should be reviewed and
modified so that users and growers are legally permitted to consume
and produce medical marijuana in any form.