BILL TO PROTECT OHIO PATIENTS READY FOR INTRODUCTION

News that Democratic state Representative Kenneth Carano will step forward
as the first elected patient advocate and introduce legislation to protect
Ohio medical marijuana patients from prosecution has sparked enthusiasm
among grassroots supporters who have been calling the switchboard in
Columbus trying to find out if their representatives are supporting the
measure.

Grassroots activists are spreading the word and organizers are putting
pressure on the legislature and distributing educational materials to the
media as well as legislators and other interested organizations.

Carano has promised to bring the bill to the attention of the Ohio House of
Representatives the moment he has four republican co-sponsors, an inside
source revealed. With 80 percent of Ohioans in support of such a measure,
introduction can't be far away.

An Act of Compassion

Compassionate use of cannabis is legal in Canada and most of Europe, but
federal law in the United States does not recognize marijuana as having any
"accepted medical use," ignoring modern sciences' understanding of the plant.

Under the Bush administration, the Justice department and Attorney General
John Ashcroft have increased federal prosecutions of medical patients in
the state of California, citing only the "need to enforce federal law".

State activists hope to push back against the misguided Justice Department
and offer a little comfort and compassion to sick and dying patients.

What It Does

The bill, known as the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act or OMMA, is out of the
legislative services commission and ready for introduction. The bill would
create a patient registry with the department of health and require that
patients and caregivers be issued identification cards.

The only legal source of medical marijuana in the United States is
controlled by the National Institutes on Drug Abuse, and only seven
patients out of potentially millions in the United States receive medical
marijuana from NIDA. These seven patients receive about 300 pre-rolled
cigarettes each month.

NIDA has no provisions for providing marijuana to states that permit the
use of medical marijuana. Lacking a reliable government controlled source,
most state medical marijuana bills are drafted to permit the cultivation
and possession of marijuana, and this one is no exception.

The bill provides for the possession of up to 1000 grams of dried marijuana
and for a number of plants to be grown for medical use, and it includes
provisions for the state health department to enact regulations to assess
and categorize which ailments and patients will be treated with cannabis.

Left Out in the Cold

Ohio patients were incensed after Governor Voinovich dismantled an
"affirmative defense" clause for medical marijuana in 1997. The clause
permitted judges and juries to consider medical-use testimony provided by
physicians and other health care officials, and whether or not marijuana
was being used for medical purposes when determining sentencing.

The action left hundreds of patients out in the cold and at the mercy of
criminal gangs in order to obtain their medicine. While the bill protects
patients against state prosecutions, where most marijuana offences are
tried, the federal law would still remain in effect - a task congress needs
to take up.