Pubdate: Fri, 02 Jan 2015
Source: Guelph Mercury (CN ON)
Page: A7
Copyright: 2015 Metroland Media Group Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.guelphmercury.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1418
Author: James Keller

NEW MEDICAL POT REGIME BESET BY COMPLAINTS

Shaun Simpson has had a migraine headache for the past seven years.
His medical problems started with surgery to remove a piece of his
skull that was pressing against his brain. The procedure left him with
a spinal-fluid leak, which, in turn, fuels a near-constant headache.

For years, Simpson took a dozen or more Tylenol 3 pills a day, but
they caused unpleasant side-effects and weren't completely effective.

About two and a half years ago, he received a prescription for medical
marijuana, which he ordered from Health Canada.

"I don't feel like I'm drugged out or stoned (like I did with) the
Tylenol 3; I'm actually more active and social," says Simpson, 34, who
works as a photographer in the Maritimes.

"It's really changed my life as far as day-to-day routine
goes."

Simpson is among tens of thousands of Canadians who have used medical
marijuana legally since 2001, and, like many of those patients, he was
forced earlier this year to adjust to a massive overhaul of the system.

The federal government implemented new rules prohibiting patients from
growing their own pot and instead restricting production and sale to a
new collection of licensed commercial operations.

But the system has been beset by complaints of low supply and high
prices. Some commercial producers have long waiting lists and are
plagued by frequent sellouts, and approvals for new operations to fill
the gap have been slow.

Simpson initially signed up for Toronto-based Mettrum, but he said the
company was often sold out of the strain he needed. He is now on the
waiting list for OrganiGram, based in Moncton, N.B., and in the
meantime he's been using grey-market marijuana dispensaries. 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D