FEDS CHARGE OVER 1,500 PER CENT MARK-UP ON CERTIFIED MEDICINAL MARIJUANA

Sick Canadians who get their certified medicinal marijuana from Health
Canada might want to consider finding a new dealer.

According to documents obtained by the Canadian Press under the
federal Access to Information Act, Health Canada pays its sole
marijuana supplier, Saskatoon-based Prairie Plant Systems, $328.75 a
kg for cannabis grown by the company in an abandoned mine shaft in
Flin Flon, MB. The pot is then sold to authorized users for $150 (not
including GST, of course) per 30-gram bag. This works out to about $5
000 a kg, which is a mark-up of over 1 500 per cent.

While the price is roughly in line with--and even, depending on the
situation, a little bit cheaper than--what recreational users
typically pay on the street, critics argue that seriously ill patients
simply cannot afford the government's prices, and Health Canada itself
admits that patients who cannot pay their pot bills are typically cut
off.

When contacted by the Canadian Press, Health Canada spokesperson Jason
Bouzanis explained that the price of $328.75 per kg only covers the
pot itself and does include distribution costs, but information
obtained by CP indicates that Health Canada pays only $9.06 per 30
gram package for labour, materials and couriering. V