POT DILEMMA 'SILLY'

74-Year-Old Needs It, Allowed To Have It, Can't Get It

PATRICIA KEEPING, 74, is on a hunt for legal marijuana.

"I bet you never thought you'd run into a pothead my age," Ms. Keeping said
Friday with a giggle.

In a more serious tone, Ms. Keeping of Lake Echo said she has permission
from Health Canada to use marijuana for medical use. This includes a
permission letter and plastic-wrapped identification card.

"I was also told my name has been entered in a national database listing
people with permission to use marijuana for medical purposes," she said.

All this fuss would make some sense, she said, except for one problem: there
is no legal marijuana.

"This is the craziness of the whole thing. . . . Anybody who might supply me
risks being arrested."

Ottawa took steps last month toward decriminalizing small amounts of
marijuana.

That development did little for Ms. Keeping, who is battling cancer and also
has arthritis.

She is allergic to most prescription drugs used for pain relief.

Ms. Keeping said she became interested in the debate over the medical use of
marijuana after realizing the pain she lived with day-to-day was threatening
to overcome her.

"I looked in the mirror one day and here was this frowning face looking back
at me," she said.

"It was from being in pain all the time."

She has applied twice and obtained legal exemption from Canada's marijuana
possession penalties but still cannot obtain the small amount of marijuana
she needs for pain relief.

"Here I am, 74 years old and looking for marijuana," she said.

Ms. Keeping, who runs a pet sanctuary on her property, has had a few chances
over the years to test the pain-relieving properties of marijuana - thanks
to friends who had legal access.

She said she found it effective when prepared as a very mild tea.

Ms. Keeping said it is ironic that she has a permit from Ottawa allowing her
to use small amounts of marijuana for medical purposes but must break the
law to obtain the drug.

"It's pretty silly, isn't it? I mean, we all know it's out there . . .
available on the street," she said.

People with chronic pain are frustrated by the lack of availability, said
John Cook, director of the Halifax branch of the Cannabis Buyers Club of
Canada.

Proposed changes to Canada's drug laws introduced May 27 do not address the
medical use issue, he said.

Mr. Cook wants to purchase and redistribute marijuana - legally - to about
55 people in the province combating chronic pain, but there is no source.

Ottawa had some marijuana grown for legal distribution last year. But the
product was not released, because the government said it wanted to further
analyse the product.

Information on obtaining applications for medical use of marijuana is
available from Health Canada at the Office of Cannabis Access in Ottawa. The
toll-free telephone number is 1-866-337-7705.