Pubdate: Wed, 10 Sep 2014
Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser (HI)
Copyright: 2014 Star Advertiser
Contact: 
http://www.staradvertiser.com/info/Star-Advertiser_Letter_to_the_Editor.html
Website: http://www.staradvertiser.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5154
Author: B.J. Reyes
Page: B3

TASK FORCE WEIGHS U.S. MEDICAL POT LAWS

Meetings on How to Address Hawaii's Regulations Are Set for Oahu and 
the Big Island

Any system of medical marijuana distribution centers in Hawaii would 
likely incorporate policies and programs that have proved successful 
in other states, but also accommodate the unique needs of the state's 
roughly 13,000 medicinal cannabis patients, officials say.

Those concerns include consideration of the fact that all interisland 
transport of marijuana is now illegal and that the product can be 
grown outdoors in Hawaii year-round, unlike in some other states 
where weather will not permit open-air cultivation, said Peter 
Whiticar, a branch chief with the state Department of Health and a 
member of the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Task Force.

The task force met Tuesday to receive a report from the state 
Legislative Reference Bureau on the status of medical marijuana laws 
in Hawaii and elsewhere.

"I think the thing that's not really surprising, but most 
interesting, is how there are similarities across the states but 
there's huge variety and variation as well," Whiticar said after the 
meeting. "I think that's what were trying to grapple with ... what is 
the mode that's going to work best for Hawaii, and there isn't a simple answer.

"It's not like ... you can pick a model off the shelf and say that's 
the one for Hawaii," he added. "It's going to be a bit of each 
different state and something perhaps unique for Hawaii as well."

Hawaii was among the first states to approve medical marijuana in 
2000, but advocates say the state has fallen behind 21 other states 
plus Washington, D.C., all of which have programs, in establishing a 
system for patients to obtain the drug legally. Nineteen states have 
established some form of dispensary system, where patients or 
caregivers can go to obtain medical marijuana without hassle or fear 
of being stopped by law enforcement.

In Hawaii, patients may grow their own supply, but the state provides 
neither the seeds nor guidance on how to obtain them for planting.

Some task force members expressed frustration over the hassles and 
obstacles in obtaining marijuana.

"I certainly understand what they're going through," said Karl 
Malivuk, a registered patient and member of the task force. "I know 
that's going to be an ongoing thing, but as long as we don't stop 
listening to those frustrations and addressing those frustrations, I 
think we'll be OK."

The task force has scheduled two meetings - one on Hawaii island and 
the other on Oahu - to solicit public comment. The first is slated 
for 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Aupuni Center in Hilo. The other is set 
for 5 p.m. Sept. 24 in the state Capitol auditorium.

State Rep. Della Au Belatti, chairwoman of the House Health Committee 
and a task force member, said she also understands patients' 
frustration. She noted that the task force is proposing to build a 
dispensary system from the ground up, with the aim of recommending a 
proposal to the 2015 Legislature.

"That's precisely why we're taking this deliberative process and 
trying to gather the information and develop a system that fits 
Hawaii," said Belatti (D, Moiliili-Makiki-Tantalus).
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom