Medical Marijuana Lawsuit Filed Against CA Department of Motor Vehicles

Americans for Safe Access has filed suit against the California Department of Motor Vehicles to stop the state from suspending and revoking the driving licenses of medical marijuana patients. For more information, click here.

Michigan Becomes 13th State To Allow Patients Access to Medical Marijuana; Other Midwestern States Prepare to Follow Suit

The passage of Prop 1 in Michigan has inspired advocates in other midwestern states to renew their efforts to allow patients in need to have access to medical cannabis. For more on this story, click here.

California Issues Medical Marijuana Guidelines

The state of California has issued guidelines designed to help patients, caregivers, and law enforcement navigate their way through that state's medical marijuana law. For more info, click here.

State Appeals Court Rejects Suit By Counties; California Medical Marijuana Law Upheld

A California state appeals court has upheld that state's medical cannabis law. The court dismissed a challenge filed by two counties against the law and against the state's patient ID program. For more information, click here.

San Diego and San Bernardino Counties Renew Fight Against Medical Cannabis Patients

San Diego and San Bernardino Counties were in the California Court of Appeals, continuing their fight against medical cannabis patients. For more information, click here.

NY Patients Urge State Senators

New York may potentially enlist as the 13th state in allowing medicinal marijuana use. The latest tactic is television ads. For more information, click here.

Hep C Victim Ineligible For Transplant Due To Medical Marijuana Use Dies

Timothy Garon was a Seattle-area man suffering from Hepatitis C who had a recommendation for medical marijuana from his physician for pain relief and nausea and also as an appetite stimulant. He was denied a spot on the transplant list at two of his local hospitals, allegedly largely because of his medical marijuana use, Shortly afterward, Tim Garon died. For more information click here.

Barack Obama Speaking About Medical Marijuana

Barack Obama, asked by the Medford, OR Mail-Tribune about his position on medical marijuana, specifically regarding state laws allowing access and whether the federal government should interfere with these laws, responded: "I'm not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws on this issue."

Internists Endorse Legal Access to Medical Marijuana

The American College of Physicians, the nation's largest organization of Internists, is calling for protection of both doctors and patients from criminal and civil penalties in states that have adopted medical-marijuana laws. For more info, check out this CSDP Public Service Ad.

Major American Physicians Organization Endorses Medical Marijuana

The American College of Physicians has endorsed easing restrictions on medical marijuana. From their webpage: "ACP believes the science on medical marijuana should not be obscured or hindered by the debate surrounding the legalization of marijuana for general use." For more information, click here.

Kansas Legislature to Consider Medical Marijuana Bill

Legislators in the state of Kansas will have the opportunity to consider a bill granting limited protection to some medical cannabis patients. For more information, click here.

Medical Marijuana Vending Machines

A new vending machine product is now available in California: medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

New Research: Long Term Marijuana Users Seeking Medical Cannabis in California

This study yielded a somewhat unexpected profile of a hitherto hidden population of users of America's most popular illegal drug. It also raises questions about some of the basic assumptions held by both proponents and opponents of current policy. Read more by clicking here.

Tragic Casualty in the Federal War Against Medical Marijuana

Montana activist and patient Robin Prosser took her own life in October 2007. Read this touching tribute by Tom Daubert.

Justice Dept.'s Drug Enforcement Agents Raid Ten Dispensaries In Los Angeles

The US Justice Dept.'s Drug Enforcement Administration raided ten medical cannabis dispensaries in Los Angeles, CA on Wednesday, July 25. For more information click here.

DEA Threatens Los Angeles Landlords To Force Closure Of Dispensaries

The US Drug Enforcement Administration is threatening landlords in Los Angeles with seizure of their property and possible prison terms for renting to cannabis dispensaries. For more information, click here.

Ed Rosenthal Given One Day Sentence

Marijuana reform advocate and cultivation expert Ed Rosenthal was sentenced on Friday, July 6 to one day in prison, time already served. For more information, click here.

Rhode Island Legislature Overrides Governor's Veto Of Medical Marijuana Program

A bill to make the Rhode Island state medical marijuana law "permanent," allowing the program to continue, has passed into law in spite of the governor's veto. For more information, click here.

Rell To Patients: Forget About It

On June 20, 2007, Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell vetoed legislation which would have allowed patients in CT to have legal access to the medicine they need. For more information click here.

New York State Assembly Approves Medical Marijuana Legislation

The New York State Assembly passed a measure to legalize medical marijuana in that state. Differences with the State Senate on the other hand may hamstring efforts. For more information, click here.

Michigan Medical Marijuana Initiative Petition Approved For Circulation

An initiative petition to allow patients in need to have access to medical marijuana has been approved for circulation in the state of Michigan. For more info, click here.

Legislature Expected To Override Governor's Veto In Rhode Island

As expected, Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri vetoed the medical marijuana legislation which reached his desk recently. Proponents have enough votes to override the governor. For more information, click here.

Connecticut Medical Marijuana Legislation Goes To Governor For Approval

Legislation to allow patients in need to have access to medical marijuana has passed both houses of the state legislature and is on the way to the governor for approval. For more information, click here.

Vermont Broadens Its Medical Marijuana Law

The Vermont State Legislature has passed a measure expanding the state's medical marijuana law. The bill will be enacted without the governor's signature. For more information, click here.

Ed Rosenthal Convicted – Again – In Retrial For Cultivating Medical Marijuana

Noted author and marijuana legalization advocate Ed Rosenthal was found guilty by a federal jury in his retrial on marijuana cultivation charges, however he will not be punished further. For more information, click here.

Connecticut House Passes Medical Marijuana Legislation

The Connecticut State House of Representatives approved legislation allowing patients in need to have access to medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

Rhode Island Legislature Poised To Make Medical Marijuana Program Permanent

Legislation has passed both houses of the Rhode Island Legislature by margins sufficient to over-ride a threatened veto. For more information, click here.

IL Senate Votes No On Medical Marijuana Bill

The Illinois State Senate voted against SB650, that would have allowed some patients in Illinois to have access to medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

Minnesota Senate Passes Medical Marijuana Legislation

The Minnesota State Senate approved a bill allowing patients in need to get access to medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

New Mexico Legalizes Medical Marijuana

Governor Bill Richardson signed medical marijuana legislation, making New Mexico the 12th state to allow patients in need to have access to medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

Appeals Court Rules Against Angel Raich

On March 14, a federal appeals court decided against medical marijuana patient Angel Raich. The ruling rejected Raich's argument that she had a right to life. For more information, click here.

Flint, MI Approves Medical Marijuana

The city of Flint, MI, approved a ballot measure to allow patients in need to have access to medical marijuana. For more information, click here.

Americans for Safe Access Sues US Dept. of Health & Human Services

Americans for Safe Access have filed suit against the federal Department of Health & Human Services, accusing it of ignoring the scientific data regarding medical cannabis. For more information, click here.

Vermont Senate To Debate Medical Marijuana

Legislation which would allow authorized patients better access to adequate amounts of medical cannabis passed a Vermont State Senate committee and will proceed to the floor of the Senate for debate. For more information, click here.

UK Tory Leader David Cameron Endorses Legalization Of Medical Marijuana

David Cameron, the leader of the Conservative (Tory) Party in England, has endorsed the legalization of medical marijuana. For more information click here.

Court Throws Out County Suit Over Medical Marijuana Law

A California state judge rejected a lawsuit by three counties challenging state's medical marijuana law. For more information click here.

Update: San Diego County Supervisors vote to continue challenge to CA's medical marijuana law. Click here for the full story.

South Dakota Fails To Pass Medical Marijuana

South Dakota voters failed to approve a ballot measure which would have allowed patients in need access to medical marijuana. For more information click here.

Federal Grand Jury Re-Indicts Ed Rosenthal

A federal grand jury has re-indicted Ed Rosenthal and two co-defendants. For more information click here.

Federal Grand Jury Looks At Ed Rosenthal

The feds conduct a new grand jury investigation into Ed Rosenthal before his new trial. For more information, click here.

Patients and their advocates, including the ACLU, will be allowed to join in defending against the suit by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors aimed at overturning California's medical marijuana laws. For more information click here.

Several San Diego Dispensaries Raided July 6; At Least 15 Arrested

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Relative Addictive Properties of Various Commonly Used Drugs

Source: Dr. Jack E. Henningfield, Ph.D. for NIDA. Reported by: Philip J. Hilts, New York Times, Aug. 2, 1994 "Is Nicotine Addictive? It Depends on Whose Criteria You Use."
Image courtesy of Drug War Facts.

Legal Federal Patient Detained In Illinois After Testifying In Support Of Medical Marijuana Bill

Irvin Rosenfeld, one of the handful of remaining legal federal medical marijuana patients, was detained by police in Springfield, IL, after testifying in support of a medicalization bill. Click here for more about the Illinois legislation.

Cannabis-Based Medication Gets Preliminary Approval In Canada

Canadian health officials gave preliminary approval for trials of GW Pharma's drug Sativex, a medication derived from the cannabis plant. Already nearing approval in England, the UK-based company plans to apply for approval in other Commonwealth countries soon.

Medical Marijuana Debate In Illinois Legislature

Legislation to allow medical marijuana for patients in need has been introduced in the Illinois legislature. A former federal official, stumping the state to oppose the measure, refuses to debate the bill's merits with the sponsor, an AIDS victim and former cop.

Spain Moves To Allow Medical Marijuana

The Spanish Health Ministry is expected to approve a Catalonian plan to allow doctors to prescribe medical cannabis. This plan, involving 60 pharmacies and four hospitals, surpasses the reforms in place in The Netherlands and in England.

South Dakota Legislature Says No To Medical Marijuana

Jan. 2005: Legislators in South Dakota rejected legislation which would have allowed doctors to recommend marijuana to patients in need.

Feds Obstruct Medical Marijuana Research

The feds say they want scientific evidence that marijuana is medicine, but do they? In 2001, a researcher at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst applied to the government grow marijuana for research. Finally in 2004, after pressure from the courts and from advocates to issue a decision, the DEA announced it was denying permission. Click here for more about this issue. Also, view this Common Sense PSA on federal obstruction of legitimate research.

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Marijuana is medicine for millions of patients around the US. Click here for medical marijuana news. Federal opposition persists in spite of successful medical marijuana programs in several states. States, cities moving to allow medical use by those in need.

For more information on medical marijuana and other drug policy reform issues, check out the Common Sense for Drug Policy. For the facts about medical marijuana, check out Drug War Facts: Medical Marijuana, and this CSDP public service ad on medical cannabis to learn more.

For The Latest News Check Out:

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Americans For Safe Access

Media Awareness Project

Drug Reform Coordination Network

Support The Campaign!

Support the Coalition campaign! To make a tax-deductible donation click here.

Get Active!

Help make sure that patients can access medical cannabis safely and legally. Americans for Safe Access maintains this terrific Take Action page on their site to help you decide what actions you can take. Common Sense for Drug Policy also maintains this organizers' toolkit on their website.

Meet The Patients

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The drug war lies on a foundation of myth. Learn the truth. Get the facts. Drug War Facts is your premier information source, offering uptodate information with full citations to aid in further research. Individual sections as well as full edition available electronically at DrugWarFacts.org. Get the facts about medical marijuana, prisons, drug treatment, syringe exchange, and more.
Help spread the word! Put a Drug War Facts banner on YOUR website. Click here for more info.

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1. Since 1996, ten states have legalized medical marijuana use: AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ME, NV, OR, VT and WA. Eight of the ten did so through the initiative process, Hawaii's law was enacted by the legislature and signed by the governor in 2000, and Vermont's was enacted by the legislature and passed into law without the governor's signature in May 2004.

   Source:  National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), from the web at http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3391, last accessed Oct. 9, 2004.

2. The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical marijuana stated, "The accumulated data indicate a potential therapeutic value for cannabinoid drugs, particularly for symptoms such as pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation."

   Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson, Jr., and John A Benson, Jr., "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base," Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1999).

3. The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical marijuana examined the question whether the medical use of marijuana would lead to an increase of marijuana use in the general population and concluded that, "At this point there are no convincing data to support this concern. The existing data are consistent with the idea that this would not be a problem if the medical use of marijuana were as closely regulated as other medications with abuse potential." The report also noted that, "this question is beyond the issues normally considered for medical uses of drugs, and should not be a factor in evaluating the therapeutic potential of marijuana or cannabinoids."

   Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson, Jr., and John A Benson, Jr., "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base," Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1999).

4. In the Institute of Medicine's report on medical marijuana, the researchers examined the physiological risks of using marijuana and cautioned, "Marijuana is not a completely benign substance. It is a powerful drug with a variety of effects. However, except for the harms associated with smoking, the adverse effects of marijuana use are within the range of effects tolerated for other medications."

   Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson, Jr., and John A Benson, Jr., "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base," Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1999).

5. The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical marijuana examined the question of whether marijuana could diminish patients' immune system - an important question when considering marijuana use by AIDS and cancer patients. The report concluded that, "the short-term immunosuppressive effects are not well established but, if they exist, are not likely great enough to preclude a legitimate medical use."

   Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson, Jr., and John A Benson, Jr., "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base," Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research, Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1999).

6. "Conclusions: Smoked and oral cannabinoids did not seem to be unsafe in people with HIV infection with respect to HIV RNA levels, CD4+ and CD8+ cell counts, or protease inhibitor levels over a 21-day treatment."

   Source:  Abrams, Donald I., MD, et al., "Short-Term Effects of Cannabinoids in Patients with HIV-1 Infection - A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial," Annals of Internal Medicine, Aug. 19, 2003, Vol. 139, No. 4 (American College of Physicians), p. 258.

7. "This study provides evidence that short-term use of cannabinoids, either oral or smoked, does not substantially elevate viral load in individuals with HIV infection who are receiving stable antiretroviral regimens containing nelfinavir or indinavir. Upper confidence bounds for all estimated effects of cannabinoids on HIV RNA level from all analyses were no greater than an increase of 0.23 log10 copies/mL compared with placebo. Because this study was randomized and analyses were controlled for all known potential confounders, it is very unlikely that chance imbalance on any known or unknown covariate masked a harmful effect of cannabinoids. Study participants in all groups may have been expected to benefit from the equivalent of directly observed antiretroviral therapy, as well as decreased stress and, for some, improved nutrition over the 25-day inpatient stay."

   Source: Abrams, Donald I., MD, et al., "Short-Term Effects of Cannabinoids in Patients with HIV-1 Infection - A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial," Annals of Internal Medicine, Aug. 19, 2003, Vol. 139, No. 4 (American College of Physicians), p. 264.

8. "Nevertheless, when considering all 15 studies (i.e., those that met both strict and more relaxed criteria) we only noted that regular cannabis users performed worse on memory tests, but that the magnitude of the effect was very small. The small magnitude of effect sizes from observations of chronic users of cannabis suggests that cannabis compounds, if found to have therapeutic value, should have a good margin of safety from a neurocognitive standpoint under the more limited conditions of exposure that would likely obtain in a medical setting."

   Source:  Grant, Igor, et al., "Non-Acute (Residual) Neurocognitive Effects Of Cannabis Use: A Meta-Analytic Study," Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society (Cambridge University Press: July 2003), 9, pp. 687-8.

9. In spite of the established medical value of marijuana, doctors are presently permitted to prescribe cocaine and morphine - but not marijuana.

   Source: The Controlled Substances Act of 1970, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.

10. Organizations that have endorsed medical access to marijuana include: the Institute of Medicine, the American Academy of Family Physicians; American Bar Association; American Public Health Association; American Society of Addiction Medicine; AIDS Action Council; British Medical Association; California Academy of Family Physicians; California Legislative Council for Older Americans; California Medical Association; California Nurses Association; California Pharmacists Association; California Society of Addiction Medicine; California-Pacific Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church; Colorado Nurses Association; Consumer Reports Magazine; Kaiser Permanente; Lymphoma Foundation of America; Multiple Sclerosis California Action Network; National Association of Attorneys General; National Association of People with AIDS; National Nurses Society on Addictions; New Mexico Nurses Association; New York State Nurses Association; New England Journal of Medicine; and Virginia Nurses Association.

11. A few of the editorial boards that have endorsed medical access to marijuana include: Boston Globe; Chicago Tribune; Miami Herald; New York Times; Orange County Register; and USA Today.

12. Many organizations have favorable positions (e.g., unimpeded research) on medical marijuana. These groups include: The Institute of Medicine, The American Cancer Society; American Medical Association; Australian Commonwealth Department of Human Services and Health; California Medical Association; Federation of American Scientists; Florida Medical Association; and the National Academy of Sciences.

13. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 established five categories, or "schedules," into which all illicit and prescription drugs were placed. Marijuana was placed in Schedule I, which defines the substance as having a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision. To contrast, over 90 published reports and studies have shown marijuana has medical efficacy.

    Source: The Controlled Substances Act of 1970, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.; Common Sense for Drug Policy, Compendium of Reports, Research and Articles Demonstrating the Effectiveness of Medical Marijuana, Vol. I & Vol. II (Falls Church, VA: Common Sense for Drug Policy, March 1997).

14. The U.S. Penal Code states that any person can be imprisoned for up to one year for possession of one marijuana cigarette and imprisoned for up to five years for growing a single marijuana plant.

    Source: The Controlled Substances Act of 1970, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.

15. On September 6, 1988, the Drug Enforcement Administration's Chief Administrative Law Judge, Francis L. Young, ruled:
    "Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known....[T]he provisions of the [Controlled Substances] Act permit and require the transfer of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II. It would be unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious for the DEA to continue to stand between those sufferers and the benefits of this substance."

    Source: US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency, "In the Matter of Marijuana Rescheduling Petition," [Docket #86-22] (September 6, 1988), p. 57.

16. The DEA's Administrative Law Judge, Francis Young concluded: "In strict medical terms marijuana is far safer than many foods we commonly consume. For example, eating 10 raw potatoes can result in a toxic response. By comparison, it is physically impossible to eat enough marijuana to induce death. Marijuana in its natural form is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man. By any measure of rational analysis marijuana can be safely used within the supervised routine of medical care."

    Source: US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency, "In the Matter of Marijuana Rescheduling Petition," [Docket #86-22], (September 6, 1988), p. 57.

17. Between 1978 and 1997, 35 states and the District of Columbia passed legislation recognizing marijuana's medicinal value.
    States include: AL, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, IA, LA, MA, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, and WI.

For additional research on medical marijuana, see this excellent analysis of medical marijuana research by Common Sense for Drug Policy President Kevin B. Zeese and this update from Common Sense for Drug Policy, as well as the Drug War Facts section on marijuana.