Pubdate: Fri, 20 Sep 2013
Source: Burlington County Times (NJ)
Copyright: 2013 Calkins Newspapers. Inc.
Contact: https://phillyburbs-dot-com.bloxcms-ny1.com/contact/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2128
Author: Terry Stern

MEDICAL MARIJUANA DELAYS PUNISH PATIENTS

Gov. Chris Christie plays politics in delaying the state's medical
marijuana program. He fights to keep children from being able to have
edible forms of the medicine. He fights to restrict the kinds of
medical cannabis permitted. He fights to restrict the number of
distribution points and greatly restricts the licenses he grants to
grow. More of our licensees are cronies or tied to the pharmaceutical
industry than in any other state.

Medical cannabis patients don't count these delays in months or years.
They count them in seizures, unhealthy pounds dropped, PTSD suicides,
days of vomiting, intractable pain and crippling spasms. They count
them in addictions to legal painkillers and AIDS and cancer deaths.

Clearly, the governor does not understand this. The only way to
consider delaying medical treatments is to deny the seriousness of
medical cannabis patients' illnesses and the efficacy of cannabis
treatments. In insisting on this ill-informed view, he defaults on his
responsibility. As governor, the Compassionate Medical Marijuana Use
Act ostensibly binds him to respect both.

Terry Stern

Pennsauken
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MAP posted-by: Matt