Pubdate: Wed, 29 Jan 2014
Source: Pottstown Mercury (PA)
Copyright: 2014 The Mercury, a Journal Register Property
Contact:  http://www.pottstownmercury.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2287
Author: Peter Jackson, Associated Press
Page: 8

PARENTS CALL FOR PA. LEGALIZATION OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

HARRISBURG (AP) - Parents of children afflicted by epileptic seizures
described their lives in heart-wrenching detail Tuesday as they
appealed to Pennsylvania lawmakers to legalize marijuana for medical
purposes, saying it could provide relief that conventional medications
have not.

The Senate Law and Justice Committee heard 2 1/2 hours of testimony
from opponents and supporters on a topic that typically raises highly
charged debate surrounding health care and illegal drugs in whatever
state it's discussed.

The Pennsylvania Medical Society opposes the bill, as does Republican
Gov. Tom Corbett. The Medical Society said more study is needed. The
Pennsylvania State Nurses Association supports the measure.

"This is a matter of great exigency because every day that goes by
there are kids who are dying" and parents who "put their kid to bed
not knowing if he is going to wake up in the morning," said Sen.
Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery.

But Sen. Mike Folmer, R-Lebanon, the bill's sponsor, acknowledged that
many misperceptions surround the issue. And the committee did not vote
on the measure before ending the hearing.

Deena Kenney of Bethlehem told the panel her 17-year-old son
Christopher was born with a disorder that hardens portions of his
brain, which in turn causes seizures, autism, mental retardation and
behavioral problems.

In a violent reaction to one medication in 2012, Christopher hurled a
glass bowl at his mother, barely missing her head and shattering the
bowl against the wall behind her, she said. For the next six months,
she wore a helmet, Kenney said.

"Chris would attack me with intent to kill me," she told the
panel.

Christine Brann of Hummelstown, near Harrisburg, said she is hopeful
that an oil extracted from the marijuana plant can ease her 3-year-old
son Garrett's seizures. She and her husband are among hundreds of
out-of-state parents currently on a waiting list for treatment in Colorado.

"There have been so many of them that they're calling these families
'medical refugees,'" she told the lawmakers.

Cara Salemme said her 7-year-old son Jackson hasn't spoken to her
since he developed pediatric epilepsy two years ago and now functions
intellectually well below his age.

Salemme is convinced that the extract may help her son. She said
Jackson's neurologist told her he would prescribe it if it were legal
in Pennsylvania.

"If it doesn't happen here, we're going to have to move," she said at
a news conference before the hearing.

Josh Stanley, who cofounded a Colorado nonprofit that produces the
extract and explores the medical potential of marijuana, told the
panel the compounds in the plant could be effective in treating
cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, diabetes and other diseases.

Medical marijuana is now legal in 20 states and the District of
Columbia. Florida's Supreme Court on Monday approved placing a
proposed constitutional amendment to allow the medical use of
marijuana on the November ballot.

The Medical also renewed its Society call for the federal government
to downgrade marijuana's status as a "Schedule I" drug - a category
that includes drugs that have no medical use, including heroin and LSD
- - to facilitate research.

Also opposed to the bill was the Benevolent and Protective Order of
Elks, which has 93 lodges in the state and has an ongoing drug
awareness program for young people. Spokesman Steven Kaylor said the
group fears the law would lead to outright legalization of marijuana.
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