MEDICAL MARIJUANA USERS OWE GOVERNMENT $168,000

Almost Half of Patients WHO Use Approved Drug Can't Keep Up With Costs

Like any dope dealer, Health Canada has its share of marijuana
customers who just don't pay their bills.

But unlike street pushers, the department avoids tire irons and
switchblades to recover its bad debts in favour of stern letters and
collection agencies.

As of last month, 127 people authorized to buy government-certified
marijuana for various medical problems were officially in arrears,
with bills unpaid for more than 90 days.

That's almost half the 278 patients who receive Health Canada
marijuana or seeds, most of them buying 30-gram bags of ground buds
for $150. A package of 30 seeds goes for $20.

Altogether, patients in arrears now owe $168,879 to Health Canada for
medical marijuana, produced on contract by Prairie Plant Systems Inc.
for the federal government.

The arrears amount has swollen by more than $100,000 over the last
year alone, as department officials realized that their medical
marijuana policy never indicated to patients the consequences of not
paying their drug bills.

Spokesman Chris Williams says these patients now receive reminder
letters and telephone calls from public servants in the department's
corporate services branch, and are given an opportunity to set up a
repayment schedule.

"If all that is rejected, the supply would be halted," he said in an
interview. So far, 19 users have been cut off from further shipments
because of non-payment.

After 180 days, a final letter is sent and if no money arrives within
10 days, the matter is sent to a collection agency.

One medical marijuana user and activist slammed the Health Department
for requiring often-impoverished patients to buy the product, saying
taxpayers have already footed the bill once.

"The Canadian people have already paid for it -- I think it's
absolutely horrible that we're charging them twice," said Alison
Myrden of Burlington, Ont., who has lived with multiple sclerosis for
more than a decade. "We have no money as it is. Most of us are on full
disability for life. ... It's a choice between marijuana or food for
most of us."

The first shipments of government marijuana in the fall of 2003 were
of such poor quality many users gagged, coughed and returned the
product. The batch was weak, dry, ground up too fine and included the
less potent leaves and stems. A new batch in May 2004 was better,
particularly for its stronger levels of THC, marijuana's main active
ingredient.