HOW A MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARD IS OBTAINED

ATLANTA - According to "Susan," who facilitates meetings of the
Atlanta Compassion Club, applicants of the Michigan Medical Marijuana
Program are waiting four to five months for their official ID cards
to come from the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH), the
agency facilitating the program.

A telephone message from MDCH, recorded in February, states the
agency is processing first-time applications from October.

Once a patient receives a doctor's signed recommendation, he or she
can send a completed application form, copy of their current photo
identification and check to cover the $100 fee to MDCH. On the form,
the patient may designate a caregiver authorized to grow their plants.

If the patient is currently enrolled in Medicaid or receiving
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability
(SSD) and submits the appropriate supporting documents, the fee is
reduced to $25.

The MDCH application instructions state applications "will be
approved or denied within 15 days of receipt by the department." If
approved, applications will be processed in the date order received,
and patients (and caregivers, if applicable) will receive their
registry ID card in the mail.

If information provided in the application is deemed false, a
patient's registry ID card becomes null and void. Incomplete
applications are denied.

According to Susan, applicants receive a temporary registry card with
a date stamp confirming the application has been received. Official
cards are backlogged about four or five months. According to the law,
if MDCH fails to issue a valid registry ID card within 20 days of its
submission, the card shall be deemed granted and a copy of the
application or renewal is considered a valid registry ID card.

Susan is a caregiver and patient who vaporizes marijuana to "deaden
the pain" of bad knees and from surgeries to correct her degenerative
discs. She said patient cards are about the size of a driver's
license, are blue and white, say "Michigan Department of Community
Health, Medical Marijuana Program," the patient's registry number,
name, address, date of birth, card issue/expiration date and
authorization for possessing plants (if applicable). There is a spot
for a photo but said hers has none.

Caregivers have a card for every patient they serve.

Cards have to be renewed annually.

"It's a lot of hassle," Susan said, "but when you need relief from
your chronic pain, it's worth the hassle."

For more information about the Medical Marijuana Program visit
www.mdch.gov and search "medical marijuana."

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ATLANTA COMPASSION CLUB A RESOURCE FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA USERS AND CANDIDATES

ATLANTA - Twice a month, users of medical marijuana, their caregivers
and prospective patients meet in Atlanta to share information about
the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act and how to obtain and use cannabis.

One facilitator of the Atlanta Compassion Club, who identified
herself as Susan, said marijuana is not smoked or swapped at the
meetings; instead, the gatherings are a tool to "be better educated
and more helpful to people as to how they can acquire their medicine."

Patients who are new to using cannabis to manage their conditions -
ranging anywhere from chronic pain to Crohn's disease - can learn
what varieties of marijuana fit their needs and the best way to
ingest the substance. They also can be put in touch with a potential
caregiver to grow their plants or talk with other people about how to
grow their own.

People who do not hold medical marijuana cards can get direction in
obtaining theirs and can have the certification process explained
(see above story).

Susan also facilitates certification clinics, scheduling appointments
for physicians like Dr. Robert "Bob" Townsend, who held a clinic in
Gaylord Friday.

Meetings are held on the first and third Tuesday of every month at
Loud Township Hall, 3910 M-33 South, Atlanta. The first Tuesday is
reserved for club members; the third Tuesday is open to the public.
The next member meeting is slated for April 5, 7-9 p.m.; the next
public meeting is April 19, 7-9 p.m.