WILL LAWMAKERS SWALLOW A MEDICAL-MARIJUANA PILL?

Ken Carano is a 58-year-old state representative who takes a dim view
of pot-smoking stoners. So, naturally, he's about to introduce a bill
legalizing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes in Ohio.

Carano, a Democrat from the Youngstown area, said he knows the odds of
getting the bill through Ohio's famously conservative legislature are
long, but he's convinced that marijuana helps some people with their
medical problems.

"I'm not going to close my eyes to things that people need," he
said.

It's been seven years since the members of the Ohio General Assembly
had their eyes opened to a stunning oversight: Tucked into a
1,000-page "truth in sentencing" bill they had passed was a provision
allowing people to defend themselves against a pot possession charge
by showing they needed the weed for medicinal purposes.

Within a few months of the discovery, the provision was snuffed out by
lawmakers.

Carano won't try to sneak anything by his colleagues, but he thinks he
can make it easier to swallow. Specifically, he's pushing pot in the
form of a pill.

"A pill is more acceptable to the run-of-the-mill senator or state
rep," he said.

One of the smokers behind Carano's push is Deirdre Zoretic, director
of patient advocacy for the Ohio Patient Network.

Zoretic, who has an incurable degenerative condition called reflex
sympathetic dystrophy, approached Carano about sponsoring the bill.
She said she regained the use of her right arm thanks to marijuana:
"It helps me manage the pain so that I can use my muscles."

Zoretic said she realizes it's sheer reefer madness to think that the
Republican-controlled legislature would consider passing the bill.

"I'm not going to fool myself; I know that this bill probably isn't
going to pass on the first try," she said. "We're in for a long
fight...but I won't die before this law is passed. It's the right thing
and the moral thing."

While medical-marijuana laws exist in 14 states, Carano acknowledged
that many legislators remain "apprehensive."

"The negative name has created a situation where a lot of people won't
touch it because they are worried that their opponent will use it
against them," he said. "At my age, I don't worry about stuff like
that."

Zoretic said the bill's language will be tight enough that only those
suffering from serious medical problems would be covered.

"This isn't something that we want to have in everyone's medicine
cabinet for when they get a headache," she said.

Carano, who is "tweaking" the bill and probably won't introduce it
until next year, said he is primarily interested in spurring debate on
the issue.

Meanwhile, he acknowledged that some proponents of medical marijuana
are their own worst enemies.

"I've literally had people representing different pro-marijuana groups
in my office, and it became pretty obvious after a few minutes that
they were stoned," he said. "I don't want to be associated with that
type of group."