POT PLAN 'PICKING ON POOR PEOPLE'

MONTREAL - Ottawa's much-anticipated legislation aimed at decriminalizing
small amounts of marijuana would still end up punishing those who need the
drug for medical purposes, an advocate for medicinal cannabis said Monday.

"This scheme is essentially picking on poor people," Hilary Black,
spokesperson for the British Columbia Compassion Club Society, told a news
conference. "People who are ill tend to be living in the most poverty."
They are often forced to choose between food and marijuana because the
current laws often force users to pay street prices of between $150 to $300
per ounce, said Black.

"The cost of medicinal cannabis right now is closer to the cost of gold
than it is to the cost of tomatoes, which in terms of production costs is
what it should be closer to," said Black.

Black suggested that health-care insurance help subsidize medicinal
marijuana, the same way that prescription drugs are covered.

The federal government is expected to unveil legislation this week aimed at
decriminalizing possession of marijuana in amounts below 15 grams.

Decriminalization does not legalize marijuana possession. But instead of
mandatory court appearances and the risk of a criminal record, offenders
could face fines similar to traffic violations.

Health Canada currently allows approved patients to smoke marijuana to
relieve pain and nausea associated with illnesses such as multiple
sclerosis, Crohn's disease and hepatitis.

But the approval is often difficult and time-consuming to obtain, said
Philippe Lucas, director of the Vancouver Island Compassion Society.

And because there's no direct legal supply of marijuana in Canada, approved
patients are often forced to buy it on the street.

Lucas, who has hepatitis C, smokes one to two grams of marijuana a day with
Health Canada's blessing.

He said allowing the so-called compassion clubs to run distribution
programs is safe, effective and doesn't cost taxpayers anything. The clubs
supply marijuana for treatment of pain and illnesses.

"What we have at Health Canada, unfortunately, is a complete failure of the
system. In over 3 1/2 years and $10 million spent, all Health Canada has
been able to do is produce a lot of court injunctions."

In January, Justice Sidney Lederman of Ontario's Superior Court declared
Health Canada's access regulations for medicinal marijuana
unconstitutional. He gave Ottawa until July 9 to fix the regulations or
supply the pot itself. Health Canada has appealed the decision but the
deadline remains.

On Monday, Black and Lucas presented nine recommendations to a Health
Canada advisory committee studying the issue of access to medicinal
marijuana. Making the drug more accessible and more affordable were among
their top priorities.

The advisory committee, which meets every three months, is made up of
experts in the area of health-care and justice, as well as patients who
rely on medicinal marijuana. The group provides advice only, not formal
recommendations, to Health Minister Anne McLellan on the issue.

McLellan could not be reached for comment Monday.

A spokeswoman for the minister said the current access program is in good
shape.

"We believe the regulations are working well," Farah Mohamed said in an
interview from Ottawa.

"There are a number of people in the country who have the ability to get
access without fear of prosecution . . . but as we go along we are learning
more about what we can try to do better."

Boris St-Maurice, spokesman for the Montreal Compassion Club, said he is
frustrated the committee's meetings are private and organizations such as
compassion clubs don't have a seat at the table.

"We're concerned about the closed doors, the secrecy, the cloak-and-dagger
that's going on around this issue," said St-Maurice.

But Jirina Vlk, a spokeswoman for the committee, said that while the
committee members are affiliated with organizations such as Corrections
Canada and the Canadian Medical Association, they are asked to sit
independently.

"People are asked to join based on their background and experience," Vlk
said in an interview from Ottawa. "The Compassion Club would be
representing the Compassion Club so their presence there would be different
than everyone else's."