Pubdate: Mon, 20 Feb 2012
Source: Herald, The (Everett, WA)
Copyright: 2012 The Oregonian
Contact:  http://www.heraldnet.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/190
Author: Noelle Crombie, The Oregonian

OUT-OF-STATERS GET OREGON MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARDS

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Twice in the past two years, Gary Storck has 
boarded Amtrak's Empire Builder outside his hometown of Madison, 
Wis., and headed west to Oregon. The trip takes about 40 hours and 
costs more than $1,000 -- all for something that makes the illegal legal.

He pays a visit to one of the state's 15 or so medical marijuana 
clinics, fills out an application and sees a doctor. Storck walks out 
an hour later, the proud holder of an Oregon-issued medical marijuana 
card. It's a process he'll have to go through each year to keep the card.

Storck, 56, is one of hundreds of out-of-staters who each year make 
an unusual pilgrimage to Oregon -- the only state in the country to 
issue medical marijuana cards to non-residents.

"It's not a bad place to visit," said Storck, who has used marijuana 
for four decades to treat glaucoma and other chronic ailments. "It 
lifts my spirits to be in a place where medical cannabis is legal and 
life goes on."

Some users of medical marijuana go through the effort to acquire an 
Oregon card because it allows them to use the drug legally when 
they're in the state. Others hope it provides some legal protection 
if they're arrested in a state where medical marijuana is outlawed. 
Many out-of-staters see an Oregon card as important recognition that 
their use of the drug is legally recognized somewhere in the United States.

Since June 2010, when the state started issuing cards to 
non-residents, nearly 600 out-of-staters have traveled here to obtain 
one, according to the Oregon Health Authority, the agency that 
oversees the state's medical marijuana program. And while it's a 
small number compared with those issued to Oregonians -- 72,000 
in-state residents got cards during that period -- it's a notable 
development for medical marijuana advocates and those who rely on the 
drug for medication.

People who live in states that outlaw the use of marijuana for 
medicinal purposes say they're relieved to have their use of the drug 
legally recognized -- even if their home state does not. And for 
those who travel to Oregon for work or to see friends and family, a 
state-issued medical marijuana card offers legal protection from 
arrest and prosecution while here.

The most out-of-state applications for Oregon medical marijuana cards 
- -- 309 -- came from Washington residents. Idaho came in second with 
138, California third with 50.

"There are patients who live in California and Washington or Idaho 
for that matter ... who travel to Oregon to visit friends and family 
and ought not be interfered with because they are possessing their 
medicine," said Leland Berger, a Portland lawyer and medical 
marijuana advocate.

It was a 2010 case that Berger argued before the Oregon Court of 
Appeals that ultimately prompted the state to drop residency 
requirements from its medical marijuana program. The court upheld a 
California man's conviction for marijuana possession but in its 
opinion noted that access to medical treatment is a protected right 
of all citizens traveling from state to state.

The appellate ruling prompted the Oregon Attorney General to issue an 
opinion clarifying the state's residency requirements for a medical 
marijuana cards: Anyone can obtain a medical marijuana card in Oregon 
as long as the person has seen an Oregon-licensed physician who's 
diagnosed a qualifying illness and suggests marijuana as treatment.

Sixteen states and Washington, D.C., have laws permitting the use of 
medical marijuana. Five of those states -- Michigan, Maine, Montana, 
Rhode Island and Arizona -- will honor Oregon's medical marijuana card.

California, the first state in the country to legalize marijuana for 
medicinal use, only issues medical marijuana identification cards to 
California residents. However, state law allows California-licensed 
doctors to issue recommendations for medical marijuana to 
out-of-staters. Those recommendations allow a person to legally use 
the drug in California.

Keith Stroup, an attorney and founder of Norml, a national group that 
advocates the legalization of marijuana, said he expects most states 
with medical marijuana programs will eventually drop their residency 
requirements.

But he and other attorneys and marijuana activists said an Oregon 
card offers virtually no legal protection outside of Oregon's borders.

"I mean it's significant in the sense that it's progressive and 
fairly liberal compared to other states. However, it doesn't really 
provide patients with protection once they leave Oregon," said Kris 
Hermes, spokesman for Americans for Safe Access, a national group 
advocating for medical marijuana laws.

Don Skakie, 52, of Renton, Wash., got an Oregon medical marijuana 
card so he can travel through Oregon without worrying about getting 
arrested. A union glazier and medical marijuana activist, Skakie is 
authorized to use medical marijuana in Washington and California, too.

"I have some work down here," he said, referring to Oregon. "But if I 
was to be pulled over, my Washington authorization would not be 
recognized as valid. I need to be recognized as a patient so I don't 
go off to jail."

Skakie, who uses medical marijuana to treat chronic back pain, said 
even with authorization in three states, he's cautious about 
traveling with the drug and discreet about using it. He said he 
recently helped move his sister from California to Missouri.

"I still had my medicine with me on that trip and medicated as I 
needed to but I was certainly hiding in the shadows and being 
extremely cautious," he said.

Storck, the medical marijuana activist in Wisconsin, which doesn't 
have a medical marijuana program, carries his Oregon card with him 
wherever he goes even though it isn't likely to offer him much legal 
protection.

"To be able to have at least one state say, 'Yes, we accept that you 
are a patient,' means so much to me," he said. "It was worth the trip 
to be recognized as a patient. I have been fighting my whole entire 
adult life for my medicine. My own home state, where I was born, 
won't recognize that."

A map of Oregon hangs in his home, a reminder that his marijuana use 
is legal here.

"I am really thankful to Oregon," Storck said. "I am legal in every 
inch of that state and that is a beautiful thought for me."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom