Medical Marijuana Work Group Named

Maryland’s Gov. O’Malley has named the citizen member of the Medical Marijuana Model Program Work Group (Work Group). Alas, I was not named to the Work Group, but don’t dismay the citizen who was named is personally known to me. Deborah Miran supports the medicinal use of marijuana. You can read an interview she gave to the local newspaper The Beacon here, http://www.thebeaconnewspapers.com/baltimore-edition/features/medical-marijuana-maryland


Other members of the Work Group include, Dr. Nancy Cohen, MD Chapter of the Natl. Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Dr. Paul Celano, an oncologist, Dr. Joseph Liberto, a psychiatrist, Dr. Trudy Hall, a physiatrist, Lynn Billing, Nurse, Phillip Cogan, a pharmacist with the Department of Health & Mental Hygiene, Dr. Ryan Vandrey, Ph.D. a research scientist and Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Dario Broccolino, of the Maryland State’s Attorney’s Association, Maj. Kevin Anderson, representing MD Chiefs of Police, Maj. Sam Billotti, IV, MD Sheriffs’ Association, Michael Young, MD Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), and last but not least Karen O’Keefe an attorney with Marijuana Policy Project.

This is how I would handicap this group; Debby Miran is a yes by definition of the group. Debby applied to be “(i) one member of the public who supports the use of marijuana for medical purposes.”

I’ll explain my thinking as I go along. Dr. Nancy Cohen I see as a toss-up since she is with the National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Abuse however she did do a video supporting the healthcare reform bill. This speaks to some progressive thinking I hope.

Since oncologists were some of the first doctors to endorse cannabis use to fight nausea I see Dr. Paul Celano as a proponent. As for our psychiatrist Dr. Joseph Liberto again a toss-up, some psychiatrists support cannabis use to treat anxiety and sometimes depression though the latter is rarer. Others though insist there is a link between marijuana use and schizophrenia. I disagree with this assertion, layman that I am for this reason; schizophrenia is an inherited disorder and therefore cannot be caused by smoking marijuana. I will however acknowledge the possibility that it could cause an earlier onset of symptoms.

Continuing on, Dr. Trudy Hall is a physiatrist, this is a specialty that frequently deals with pain management and a member I hope we can count on as a proponent. My personal physiatrists have broken down this way. One was very curious about my use and success with medicinal marijuana. The other was the one, who told me it was time after ten years to come off of Vicodin and Flexeril, since they were probably no longer providing a therapeutic effect. I asked him directly about using cannabis instead and his answer was that he would prefer it over opiates and muscle relaxers since it is less toxic.

Lynn Billing is listed as a nurse. However the American Nurses Association (ANA) “recognizes that patients should have safe access to therapeutic marijuana/cannabis. Cannabis or marijuana has been used medicinally for centuries. It has been shown to be effective in treating a wide range of symptoms and conditions." *Position Statement: Providing Patients Safe Access to Therapeutic Marijuana/Cannabis," American Nurses Association (ANA) website, Mar. 19, 2004. Her personal position is an unknown.

Phillip Cogan is a pharmacist currently with the Maryland Department of Health & Mental Hygiene (DHMH). The American Pharmacists Association adopted the following statement as being association policy: “APhA supports research by properly qualified investigators operating under the investigational new drug (IND) process to explore fully the potential medicinal uses of marijuana and its constituents or derivatives.”

The next person is one that I have actually spoken to. Dr. Ryan Vandrey, Ph.D. is a research scientist and Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He is looking for a balanced approach that allows for data collection as to the benefits and/or detriments to the patients and society. His opinions can be heard more in this interview from 2009 General Wellness Webcast entitled “The Science Behind Medical Marijuana” hosted by Judy Forman. Also included along with Dr. Vandrey is heard Dr. Donald Abrams, M.D. http://www.everydayhealth.com/healthy-living/webcasts/the-science-behind-medical-marijuana-transcript-1.aspx *copyright 2009.

The attorney on the Work Group you would have to say is on the proponent side. After all, her day job is with the Marijuana Policy Project. Karen O’Keefe knows the state of the law. She will be a terrific advocate for patients.

Dario Broccolino, of the Maryland State’s Attorney’s Association, Maj. Kevin Anderson, representing MD Chiefs of Police, Maj. Sam Billotti, IV, MD Sheriffs’ Association, Michael Young, MD Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), sorry but I think their affiliations say it all.

There that’s our Maryland Medical Marijuana Model Program Work Group. The first meeting will be in mid-August. At some point I am told there will be a website to follow the progress of the Work Group. There are also supposed to be some public sessions. I’ll keep everyone up to date on these aspects of the Work Group’s progress.

The final report is due to the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and the House Judiciary Committee, “including draft legislation that establishes a program to provide access to marijuana to patients in the State for medical purposes under a model analogous to a compassionate use protocol for unapproved drugs” by December 1, 2011. So now we wait while lawmakers define, “under a model analogous to a compassionate use protocol for unapproved drugs”

I spoke to Debby Miran the “citizen” member of the Work Group. I recently had lunch with Debby & Marybeth Nelson. Naturally the topic was the Work Group. For one Debby is a great choice. For Debby the days of using cannabis are over as her condition has improved. Marybeth is a strong voice for medicinal use of marijuana. She still does not use cannabis to manage her symptoms from MS. She is in it for the day when she can do so legally. We are all still concerned that there are some that want only a clinical trial program. A clinical trial will mean only a lucky few who get chosen to be a part of the trial will have access to medical marijuana. We also discussed where this marijuana is coming from. If somehow they get marijuana from the government stash in Mississippi it will be a lot less potent than what is usually considered “medicinal” in potency.

From the law there seems to be question as to what is supposed to happen via this Work Group. Is this what is supposed to happen? “The Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene shall convene a Work Group to develop a model program to facilitate patient access to marijuana for medical purposes.” Or is it “draft legislation that establishes a program to provide access to marijuana to patients in the State for medical purposes under a model analogous to a compassionate use protocol for unapproved drugs.”? Under the second statement it sounds like we’re getting a study not a real medical marijuana law. The second by position in the bill is likely to be the superseding statement.