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New Oregon medical marijuana initiative to be filed
Pubdate: Thur 14 Feb 2002
Pubsource: KATU.com
http://www.katu.com/news/story.asp?ID=40933
February 14, 2002
New Oregon medical marijuana initiative to be filed
Medical marijuana may become easier for Oregon patients to obtain.
The Life with Dignity Committee will file a state ballot initiative Thursday
to expand and clarify the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, passed by voters in
1998.
Titled Oregon Medical Marijuana Act II (OMMA2), the initiative would:
Lower the fee patients pay for an OMMA card from $150 to $20.
Create medical marijuana dispensaries where registered patients would be
able to buy medical marijuana. These dispensaries would be licensed and
regulated by the state Department of Human Services and would be required to
provide marijuana at no cost to qualified indigent patients.
Expand the amount of marijuana that patients could grow and possess.
Allow nurse practitioners and naturopaths to qualify patients in addition to
the M.D.'s and D.O.'s who currently can qualify patients.
Allow caregivers to be compensated for assisting patients with medical
marijuana.
The Life with Dignity Committee is the chief committee that will sponsor the
initiative, which was drafted by Voter Power, an Oregon group that has been
involved in implementing Oregon's medical marijuana law since 1998.
According to the committee, the initiative is a response to numerous
problems with the current medical marijuana law.
"Most patients who have qualified for the OMMA program are having a very
hard time producing their own medicine," said John Sajo of Voter Power.
"Marijuana is a safe, effective medicine," he added. "Patients should be
able to get it."
A poll conducted last year showed 81% of Oregon voters are in favor of
licensed dispensaries.
Backers of the initiative must collect 66,786 valid signatures by July 5,
2002 for the measure to appear on the November 5, 2002 Oregon ballot.
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Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
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