MEDICAL MARIJUANA COULD BOOST NJ ECONOMY, PROPONENTS SAY

TRENTON -- With New Jersey in need of an economic boost, medical
marijuana advocates say the state should not overlook the lift the
drug can provide when it's expected to become legally available at the
end of the year.

The newly minted medical marijuana law will allow New Jersey to begin
cashing in on what is a nearly $2 billion market for states with
similar laws, Thomas Leto, president of the U.S. Medical Marijuana
Chamber of Commerce, said at a news conference Wednesday.

Leto speculated there will be a surge of new New Jersey residents --
those exiting neighboring states, such as New York, where the drug
isn't legal.

=93There will be new spending, new jobs and new businesses,=94 Leto
said.

Leto said 20 companies traded on the New York Stock Exchange have
investments in marijuana dispensaries and ancillary businesses. New
Jersey is joining 15 other states and the District of Columbia in
allowing the growing, sale and use of medical pot.

Ken Wolski of the Coalition for Medical Marijuana said he's hopeful
New Jersey's program will launch by the end of the year, noting that
Gov. Chris Christie directed the state health department to begin
setting up the program in July.

Christie conducted a lengthy vetting of the enabling legislation,
which was passed while Gov. Jon S. Corzine was in office.

The new law removes statewide penalties for the possession and use of
up to 2 ounces of marijuana a month when a New Jersey-licensed doctor
recommends it for patients with cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis and
other qualifying conditions.

Wolski said the law has flaws -- including severe potency restrictions
on the marijuana -- but it's a step in the right direction.

=93No patient should ever suffer needlessly because we don't have a
program, and no patient should ever go to jail for following a
doctor's orders,=94 Wolski said.

Department of Health and Senior Services officials said the program
remains on track to open soon. So far 99 physicians have registered to
participate and six distribution centers =93are all in various stages of
preparing to open,=94 department spokeswoman Donna Leusner said .

=93The patient registry will be open when the (centers) report to the
department that they are close to being able to provide medicinal
marijuana to eligible patients,=94 Leusner said.

The other states allowing medical pot are Alaska, Arizona, California,
Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New
Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.

Medical marijuana is a $1.7 billion market in states where the drug is
legal, according to a report released in March by See Change Strategy,
a financial analysis firm.

Christie has touted New Jersey's program as a model because it serves
a narrow group of patients and limits dispensing to six sites. The law
doesn't affect a prohibition on personal cultivation, and it requires
background checks for caretakers who pick up marijuana on behalf of
others.