MEDICINAL MARIJUANA - NO EASY HIGH

A Local Doctor Who Advocates It Says Don't Smoke It

Sun Life Family Health Center Won't Prescribe It

The State Won't Help You Find a Doctor WHO Will Prescribe
It

If You Do Get a Permit for It, You Won't Be Able to Find It for
Months

When Dr. Donald Hill, a Western Pinal County-based oncologist, first
heard of Proposition 203 - the 2010 ballot question that eventually
legalized the use of medical marijuana in Arizona - he was opposed to
the measure, despite having seen positive benefits the drug has on
cancer patients.

"I thought it was a backdoor effort to legalize recreational use of
the drug, which I am opposed to," Hill said. "I thought Arizona would
become like California or Colorado, where people can get medical
marijuana for anything from a hangnail to a hangover."

When he learned more about the measure and that the state would place
strict controls over the drug, he became a proponent of the cause and
now hopes to open one of the first medical marijuana dispensaries in
Casa Grande.

"Having advanced cancer is no trip to Disneyland," he said. "Cancer
patients who use medical marijuana are not using it for euphoria.
They're not using it as a recreational drug."

On Thursday, the Arizona Department of Health Services began accepting
certification applications from patients seeking to use medical
marijuana. Patients with allowable conditions, including cancer,
glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,
Crohn's disease, agitation of Alzheimer's disease, a chronic or
debilitating disease or medical condition that causes cachexia or
wasting syndrome, severe and chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures or
other debilitating medical conditions may qualify for state approval
to use medical marijuana.

But not all in the medical profession are onboard with writing
certifications for their patients, even if those patients have an
approved medical condition.

Sun Life Just Says No

Because marijuana is still classified as an illegal drug by the
federal government, doctors at Sun Life Family Health Centers which
has locations in Maricopa, Casa Grande, and four other Pinal cities
will be among the area physicians who will not write medical marijuana
certifications for their patients, said Dr. Robert Babyar, medical
director of Sun Life.

"I support our organization's position that marijuana is labeled by
the federal government as an illegal drug and there is a potential for
inappropriate requests for and use of the drug," Babyar said.

As a federally recognized health center, Sun Life is prohibited by
federal law to prescribe medical marijuana - or any illegal drug - to
patients.

Babyar said that so far, no Sun Life patients have asked about
obtaining medical marijuana certification, although some patients
might qualify.

"The last category for qualification is rather vague and we have a
fair number of patients who may qualify under the chronic or
debilitating disease category with pain, nausea or muscle spasm," he
said. "For those patients who do ask about a certificate for medical
marijuana, our providers will counsel on alternative options or refer
patients to outside providers."

The anti-nausea medication Marinol, which uses an artificial THC
component as the active ingredient, is a legal drug that Sun Life
providers could write a prescription for in some cases, Babyar said.

Who Can Prescribe Pot?

Doctors who write certifications for medical marijuana will not need a
special license from the state, but they will need to be licensed with
their respective medical boards, said Will Humble, director of the
Arizona Department of Health Services.

"The law allows for four types of physicians to write certifications
for patients to use medical marijuana - allopathic (medical doctor),
osteopathic, homeopathic or naturopathic," Humble said.

Qualifying patients whose doctors will not or cannot write
certifications for medical marijuana will find no help from state
officials in finding a willing doctor.

"The state is not in the position to recommend physicians to
patients," Humble said. "It will be up to the patients to find doctors
who write certifications for medical use of marijuana."

Hill said that he respects the opinions of doctors who will not or
cannot write certifications for medical marijuana.

"We're charting new territory here," he said. "Medical marijuana is
still frowned upon by the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] and a
lot of people would argue that unless a drug is approved by the FDA,
there is no sense in getting involved. If I wasn't in the field of
oncology, I might agree."

He said he too had doubts about the drug's benefits when in 2006 he
signed on to a four-year study testing the effects of the marijuana on
cancer patients.

"I thought it would be all smoke and mirrors, but I saw the benefit
medical marijuana had on patients," he said.

Medical marijuana is effective in easing pain, nausea and anxiety and
Hill believes that about one-third of cancer patients use the drug
illicitly to ease the effects of cancer treatment.

Because cannabinoid receptors, like opioid receptors, are found
naturally in the human body and are activated when the plant is
consumed, Hill believes that humans evolved along with the cannabis
plant.

"In all likelihood, humans have been using cannabis for thousands of
years," he said.

Up in Smoke

But he does not advocate allowing patients to smoke the
drug.

"Smoking is an absurd drug delivery system," Hill said. "One medical
marijuana joint can have as much tar as an entire pack of cigarettes.
There are serious risks with smoking it."

Instead, he advocates dispensing the medication in edible form, where
medical marijuana is infused into foods like baked goods or butter.

State oversight of physicians, dispensaries and cultivators will help
prevent abuse, he said.

"Everything will be monitored by the state, from the ground to
harvest, with inventory checks to make sure that medical marijuana
doesn't end up in some teen's lunch box," Hill said.

While the state has begun accepting certification applications from
patients, those who receive approval to use medical marijuana will
wait several months until the ADHS approves dispensaries and
cultivators.

State health officials will begin accepting applications from
potential dispensaries and cultivators June 1. Applications will be
accepted throughout the month and will take about six weeks to
evaluate. Dispensary certificates will be awarded in August and the
first facilities should open soon after.

"Some potential dispensary owners are already working with local
jurisdictions for zoning," said Laura Oxley, communications director
for the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Pinal Pot Dispensaries

Pinal County is likely to become home to at least four dispensaries -
one in each of the state's Community Health Analysis Areas, which in
Pinal County are Florence, Casa Grande, Coolidge and
Superior/Kearny.

Approved patients who do not live within 25 miles of a dispensary will
be permitted to grow up to 12 plants of their own marijuana in an
enclosed, locked facility.

Some think that for that reason, locating dispensaries near population
centers will better control the drug and prevent abuse.

"It is better to have dispensaries with oversight and control than
having people growing their own," said C. Alton Bruce, director of
Growth Management for the city of Coolidge.

Like many other communities, Coolidge has amended zoning rules to
better regulate where dispensaries and cultivators are able to operate.

In both Casa Grande and Coolidge, medical marijuana facilities -
whether they are dispensaries, cultivators or infusers - will be
required to obtain a conditional use permit and are allowed only in
certain, approved commercial zones.

Bruce said that while he has fielded several inquiries from potential
medical marijuana organizations, only one application for a
conditional use permit for a dispensary has been submitted to Coolidge
officials. He was expecting one cultivator to also submit an
application for a conditional use permit.

The Casa Grande Planning and Development Department is reviewing four
applications for medical marijuana dispensaries, according to Paul
Tice, department director.

Each application proposes locating near Casa Grande Regional Medical
Center within the city's Medical Marijuana Overlay Zone.

"Although we are reviewing four applications, only one will be
approved for actual use, as ADHS will only allocate one dispensary
license to the Community Health Analysis Area, which includes Casa
Grande," Tice said. "Additionally, each of the four locations are in
close proximity to one another and will not meet the 500-foot spacing
between medical marijuana uses."

No permit applications have been submitted for cultivation or infusion
facilities within Casa Grande, he said.

In February, Pinal County supervisors approved amendments to planning
and zoning rules that require dispensaries, off-site cultivation
locations and food-infusion operations to obtain a special use permit
to operate.

By last week, no applications for special use permits had been
received by county officials, said Heather Murphy, communications
director for Pinal County. But three concept reviews - a first step in
applying for a permit - had been received for two dispensaries and one
cultivation facility in unspecified parts of Pinal County, Murphy said.