The Physician's oath says nothing about protecting pharmaceutical market share...

Sampled from the ASA website:

“Norman B. Smith, 63, was diagnosed with inoperable liver cancer in 2009 and put on the transplant list at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles in Sept. 2010. But after testing positive for cannabis in February, he was removed from the transplant list and told he has to test clean for six months before being reconsidered.

Smith's oncologist at Cedars-Sinai, Dr. Steven Miles, had approved of his medical cannabis use as a means to deal with the effects of chemotherapy, as well as pain from an unrelated back surgery. Smith's cancer was in remission but has recently recurred, and he is beginning radiation treatments.”

((you can read the whole story at
http://americansforsafeaccess.org/ )) in the December 2011 newsletter

It seems the saddest kind of irony that the pro-cannabis oncologist was likely suggesting Medical Marijuana as a less destructive alternative, liver-wise, than the pill form opiate pain management alternatives that capture such a gigantic portion of big Pharma's revenues. Perhaps we progressive Californians should try a little legislative judo. Make all pharmacies and dispensaries be governed by the same regulations. No pharmacies within 500 feet of schools, etc... We could even require our local dispensary staffers to obtain a Px certification which would assist them in providing patient advisories and counseling about the use of thier meds and relevant symptoms. I doubt most medical marijuana patients would mind going to their local pharmacy for their meds...so long as big Pharma hasn't distilled down the medicinal aspects of cannabis to a pill--unnecessarily concentrating the active ingredients beyond the natural benefits until it too....destroys...your....liver.

Same Site...Newly organized...

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To Obama or Not Obama...

City Council Redux

Okay...so, the petition drive was successful and the City Council has withdrawn the ban-by-zoning ordinance. Now what?

Most Prop215 advocates are viewing this as a victory of sorts, although it puts us back in the position where unclear and often contradictory regulations exist and enforcement activities can continue to be seemingly random and unfocused. My expectation is that the City Council will simply do virtually the same thing again...with minor changes. I don't see anything to prevent them from singing the same song again...in a different key. Here's why...

The Federal government appears adamant on reclassifying Cannabis as a controlled substance. Despite years of legitimate attempts to review this baseless characterization, it seems that the pharmaceutical lobby will win out, yet again.

Secondly, it doesn't appear that any changes being proposed in California will eliminate the District Attorney's ability to bring cases against Coop/Dispensaries even when they exceed the organizational and compliance requirements of the existing legislation... Terrie Best, writing for the ASA website, quoted Mr. Wuerfel of the Redwood legal group regarding the ongoing case against patient Dexter Padilla. Wuerfel put it most succintly in saying, "The process is the punishment", recognizing that the time, effort and money spent in fighting off a criminal case is a successful form of prohibition-by-enforcement--even when the defendants are ultimately exonerated. Plants pulled out by the roots are a total loss and no method of compensation to defendants for overstepping enforcement exists.

Even when judges rebuke enforcement agencies or city council regulations in open court, the harassment continues. Oceanside's NCC is reopened, with a solid ruling from the Judge disallowing the closure. However, the city attorney for O'side continues to threaten a per-day fine for failing to comply with registration requirements THAT THE CITY HASN'T BOTHERED TO CREATE. At the next election, remember how the O'side City Council ignores the spirit of our voter-passed referendum...Sic Semper Tyrannis.

I'm not optimistic in this environment about the prospects my clients face regarding ongoing harassment and enforcement actions. That said, it is better to have all the 'eyes' dotted and tees crossed if you elect to venture into this environment.