WEEDING OUT FEDS' POSITION ON MEDICAL POT

About 250-kgs of marijuana has been harvested for medicinal use by Health
Canada's lone legal supplier, but to date, none of that federal pot crop
has reached the people it was intended for.

Now, federal Health Minister Anne McLellan is saying she feels
'uncomfortable' with the idea of distributing marijuana before the pot can
be clinically tested, in the same manner as other prescription drug, before
it reaches patients. Such a process has been known to take between five and
10 years.

Phillipe Lucas of the Vancouver Island Compassion Society, a downtown
Victoria-based supplier of medical marijuana, says having to wait for
results of such testing could force sick people -- many of whom currently
rely on pot secured from compassion clubs to ease their pain and suffering
- -- to resort to more illicit sources. "I think not enough people are
showing concern for the people who could benefit and need it right now,"
says Lucas.