Pubdate: Fri, 15 Jan 2016 Source: Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ) Copyright: 2016 The Arizona Republic Contact: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/sendaletter.html Website: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/24 Author: Yvonne Wingett Sanchez POT'S FUTURE IN ARIZONA CONTESTED ON MANY FRONTS Legalization Nears Ballot; Bills Target Medical Use As a marijuana-legalization campaign nears its goal of gathering 150,000 valid signatures to get on the statewide November ballot, two Arizona lawmakers are proposing bills that would place limits on its medical use. Republican Rep. Jay Lawrence of Scottsdale is seeking to restrict access to medical marijuana with a bill that would ban naturopaths and homeopaths from writing prescriptions for the drug, require patients to renew cards every six months and punish those cardholders who sell or give the drug to kids. If approved, it would be referred to the November general election ballot. A second bill, proposed by Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, would exclude pregnant women from the medical marijuana program "regardless of her diagnosis as having a debilitating medical condition." The two bills are being proposed at the same time an initiative to legalize recreational use of marijuana appears headed for that same November ballot. The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol is a few thousand signatures short of gathering the 150,642 signatures needed to qualify for the ballot, spokesman Barrett Marson said Wednesday. However, some of those signatures are likely invalid - gathered from people who cannot vote - and the group aims to collect 225,000 signatures. "Arizonans are clearly excited about this initiative," Marson added. Since medical marijuana was approved by voters in 2010, however, Republican lawmakers have sought to limit access. It's unclear how the new attempts will play with the GOP-controlled Legislature and Gov. Doug Ducey, who opposes legalizing the drug. Changes to the law would require approval by three-fourths of the Legislature and must further the intent of the law. Lawrence's HCR 2019 is notable because naturopaths and homeopaths account for an overwhelming majority of the authorized use of medical marijuana, according to state data. Nearly 88,000 Arizonans held medical-marijuana cards in December, and the number has been steadily rising since Arizonans approved the program in 2010. The law allows people with certain debilitating medical conditions - such as severe nausea, chronic pain and cancer - to use cannabis. Patients must obtain recommendations from a physician and register with the state. Program rules require physicians to perform a physical exam, a review of a year's worth of medical records and a review of a state database that tracks prescription-drug use. Physicians are not required to ask if patients are pregnant. Lawrence said his legislation is aimed at protecting youths while cracking down on physicians who may be improperly recommending cannabis. He is confident his colleagues "see the same threat to society that I see." Lawrence, who supported medical marijuana years ago, said he now sees it as a detriment to public safety. Lawrence also questions whether physicians are recommending marijuana for truly medicinal purposes and points to the state data on naturopaths' large share of recommendations. The state Department of Health Services, which oversees the program, said physicians gave 77,639 certifications for medical marijuana in 2015. All but 10,031 were written by naturopaths, according to preliminary data. In the past, the state's former health director, Will Humble, said the large number of recommendations by naturopaths raises concerns that patients are seeking recommendations from "certification mills" instead of primary-care doctors, who may be more well-versed in patients' medical histories. He said the program was billed as a way to help veterans and the elderly but has been exploited. He wants to go after those who abuse it - namely those who give or sell medical marijuana to kids. But Ryan Hurley, an attorney who specializes in marijuana law, said Lawrence's bill does not "further the purpose" of the marijuana law, and, therefore, is fatally flawed. "Hopefully it should be dead on arrival, but we'll see," Hurley said, adding that lawmakers should not try to limit the types of physicians who can prescribe marijuana. "There are a great number of MDs that are afraid to prescribe medical marijuana - even if they're OK with the actual use of it," he said. "They refer people to naturopaths to get their cards. It's a natural approach - it's not outside the realm of reason that a naturopath would be more inclined to recognize the natural benefits" of marijuana, he said. Under Townsend's bill, meanwhile, pregnant women would not be eligible to join the medical-marijuana program. In an emailed statement, she wrote, "(T)he harmful effects of this drug on the fetus is undeniable and empirically substantiated and therefore does not find a place in the effective medical management of a pregnancy." She said exposing a fetus to drugs could be concluded as neglect, "and therefore a woman risks losing her child to DCS should she or the child test positive at birth." In 2012, members of the Arizona chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics said they wanted to stop pregnant women from using marijuana obtained through the program and pointed to one incident in which a mother in labor told hospital officials she had received a medical-marijuana card during pregnancy and had been using the drug. The pediatricians believe marijuana is harmful to the fetus. Hurley, the attorney, speculated there may be a greater push by GOP lawmakers to support the new legislation, but he questioned the extent of use of the drug by pregnant women. He added if pregnant women are intent on using marijuana for non-medicinal purposes, "it's not like they have a hard time finding it." He cautioned lawmakers against interfering with the relationship between patients and doctors. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom