Update - Where Do We Go From Here?

Well this year's hearings on Maryland's medical marijuana bills HB 291 and SB 308 have concluded. To say these bills are on life support is optimistic. But hey, a little optimism goes a long way. There is still activity outside the hearing process to try to work out something. I will of course keep readers up to date on anything that comes out of those discussions.

I want to thank Del. Morhaim and Sen. Brinkley for championing this issue in our state. I also want to tell everyone, that despite my opposition to their approach on cultivation and distribution these two gentlemen have treated me and all proponents of personal cultivation with the utmost respect. I thank them and their staffs for the kindness they have personally shown me.

The big news coming out of these hearings has been the change in position by Governor O'Malley and the Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH). The governor sent the Secretarty of DHMH Joshua Sharfstein to convey this to the committees. This spurred the following response from yours truly in the Baltimore Sun:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-medical-marijuana-20110302,0,3781625.story

That article apparently caused the Associated Press to contact Prof. Lyle Craker of the University of Massachusetts Amherst for comment. That lead to this article on the AP wire this morning: http://headlines.verizon.com/headlines/portals/headlines.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=headlines_portal_page__article&_article=3347693

We as medical marijuana activst are asking all concerned citizens to contact Sec. Sharfstein (JSharfstein@dhmh.state.md.us) to urge him to end his opppostion this legislation. We do not need though we would like to have it, his support. If he would simply come out and say at this time DHMH is not taking a position, it might be enough to move forward. Certainly contacting Gov. O'Malley's office(http://www.governor.maryland.gov/mail/) as they say, "couldn't hurt."

This is what I wrote to Sec. Sharfstein a short while ago:

Dear Sec. Sharfstein,
Thank you for coming to testify on HB 291 & SB 308. While I disagree with your assessments on the value of the medicinal use of marijuana I appreciate your involvement in the debate. I think it is important that you see this article from the Associate Press today: http://headlines.verizon.com/headlines/portals/headlines.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=headlines_portal_page__article&_article=3347693

I believe this is a direct result of my op-ed in the Baltimore Sun. I would very much like to be included in further discussions on this issue between you and the medical marijuana advocacy groups.

In 2007 I was the only Maryland patient to come forward to testify. At that time the Bush White House vehemently opposed all medical marijuana laws in the United States. To block Maryland’s attempt they sent Dr. Bertha Madras, of ONDCP to testify against me.

Yours and her testimony sounded an awful lot alike. Both of you seem to think that the only safe medicines are FDA approved. How than do you explain the spontaneous bruising I experienced while taking Celebrex and eventually Vioxx. While on Celebrex I began to experience sudden bruising in my extremities after swimming. I asked my pharmacist about a possible drug related cause. She checked the information sent to all patients by Pfizer concerning Celebrex. She was of the opinion that while the literature clearly stated the problem of spontaneous bleeding in the stomach, a closer reading meant that this could happen anywhere in the body.

On her suggestion I decided to try Vioxx to see if this spontaneous bleeding would be less on a different COX2 inhibitor. On the evening of December 27, 2000 while watching TV I experienced a stroke. The stroke was due to spontaneous bleeding in my brain and not a clot.

To date it seems the only investigations even being considered by the FDA pertain to the isolation of various cannabinoids. This research approach does not take into consideration the interaction of all the cannabinoids contained in “whole” cannabis. There have been papers written about this and I urge you to have your staff look them up for you so you can be better informed.

From the age of sixteen I have dealt with osteoarthritis. By the time I reached my mid-twenties I was begging doctors for something stronger than over the counter medicines like , aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen. It was not until I was forty-five and finally told of my Post-Polio Syndrome that I was finally prescribed stronger drugs.

These same doctors have taken me off the opiates and muscle relaxers because they are no longer effective. Also because further long term use would surely cause liver damage. Pain management, as it was once explained to me by a nurse practioner, working with a pain management clinic is controlled addiction. If we are going to allow controlled addiction should we not consider allowing the use of a substance that does not have the potential for liver damage that these other drugs do.

I understand that at this time we will never have your full-throated support of medical marijuana legislation. All we as patients are asking is that you put your reservations aside for now and take no position on Maryland’s attempt to improve on the Darrell Putnam Compassionate Use Act. Until the federal government begins to study the therapeutic benefits of inhaled or orally ingested cannabis it is up to the states to join patients in what is an active of civil disobedience and allow the medicinal use of marijuana.

As each new state begins their own medical marijuana programs, the anecdotal evidence increases. The stronger the anecdotal evidence accumulated by more and more states, the more likely the federal government will be to begin studying the therapeutic benefits of inhaled or ingested cannabis. I believe that the closer we get to a majority of states having a medical marijuana laws on their books, the closer we get to a federal medical marijuana law.
Sincerely,

You can't change anything by staying silent. Let your government know the time has come to pass comprehensive medical marijuana laws not only in your state but in Congress also.