Tuesday, January 27, 2009

This History of Medical Marijuana

By Dr. Julian Reindhurst

The opinion on the value of medical marijuana has been intensely contested. Some dismiss medical marijuana as a hoax that exploits our natural compassion for the sick and others claim it is a uniquely soothing medicine that has been withheld from patients through regulations based on false claims.

Proponents of both views cite "scientific evidence" to support their views and have expressed those views at the ballot box in recent state elections.

In January 1997, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy petitioned the Institute of Medicine to conduct a review of the scientific evidence to assess the potential health benefits and risks of marijuana and its constituent cannabinoids.

That review began in August 1997 and culminates with this news article.

The ONDCP (Office of National Drug Control Policy) request came during the medical marijuana initiatives. By November 1996, voters in California and Arizona passed referenda designed to permit the use of marijuana as medicine.

Arizona's referendum was invalidated five months later but galvanized a national response.

Voters in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington passed ballot initiatives in support of medical marijuana in November of 1998.

At that time, the Colorado vote did not count, however, because after the vote was taken a court ruling determined there had not been enough valid signatures to place the initiative on the ballot.

As of June 1, 2006, Colorado joined the growing list of states with active medical marijuana programs.

This occurred in the wake of last November's voter approval of Amendment 20, the medical marijuana initiative sponsored by Coloradans for Medical Rights and its parent group, California-based Americans for Medical Rights, and after the Colorado legislature passed necessary implementing legislation this spring.

As of June 7th, the state registry for medical marijuana patients had sent off 150 applications to patients and received 13 completed application forms, according to the registry administrator.

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