Pubdate: Fri, 26 Jan 2018 Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON) Copyright: 2018 Canoe Limited Partnership Contact: http://www.torontosun.com/letter-to-editor Website: http://torontosun.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/457 Author: Sarah Hanlon Page: 17 Group Taking To The Streets To Protest Federal Proposal TAX ON MEDICAL POT 'WRONG' Medical cannabis patients who use the plant to treat conditions ranging from eczema to cancer are coming together this Friday from 10 a.m. to noon in front of Finance Minister Bill Morneau's downtown Toronto constituency office at 430 Parliament St., to call out the government's proposed plan to increase the already unfair and burdensome tax on medical cannabis. Unlike medical cannabis, most prescribed medications are not taxed, creating a situation where patients are choosing medications based on financial options rather than harm reduction and efficacy. During a time when opioids are killing thousands of Canadians a year, we should be making access to medical cannabis easier, not more difficult and costly. But after years of campaigning with promises to legalize marijuana without changing the medical program in any way, Justin Trudeau's Liberal government is going back on its word (yet again) and proposing an additional 10% excise tax on medical pot. For those who already struggle to pay for their green meds out of pocket (most insurance companies will not cover cannabis like they do other prescription drugs and cannabis is already unfairly taxed) this 'sin' tax simply cannot stand. Morneau should be ready for a big (and smokey) crowd. A Facebook event page created for the protest showed 75 people have RSVP'd and another 292 were interested in attending. I caught up with founder and executive director of Canadians for Fair Access to Medical Marijuana, Jonathan Zaid, to discuss why patients are done with petitions and instead turning to protest the government's proposed tax increase on medical cannabis. Zaid has had plenty of success petitioning the government on behalf of medical marijuana patients; he has successfully advocated for medical insurance coverage and helped to eliminate fees Ontario-based doctors often charged for cannabis authorizations. Zaid thinks the proposed tax is unfair and harmful for medical cannabis patients. Why is it important for CFAMM to organize now? "CFAMM is organizing a rally as part of our continued #DontTaxMedicine campaign, calling on the government to drop their proposal to apply a sin tax to medical cannabis. Applying taxes to medical cannabis - a medicine - is wrong and will negatively impact the lives of the over 200,000 Canadians who use cannabis for medical purposes." What is the significance of holding the rally outside Morneau's office? "Over 16,000 Canadians and a coalition of 12 nonprofits have supported the elimination of tax on medical cannabis, yet Finance Minister Morneau has not made any commitment to drop the proposal. We are rallying outside the minister's office to demonstrate the community's steadfast dedication to see the tax dropped." What outcome does CFAMM expect from the protest on Friday? "We hope the protest will bring further awareness of the urgent need to eliminate taxes on medical cannabis. The only fair decision the government can make is to treat medical cannabis like every other prescription and accordingly exempt it from tax." - --- MAP posted-by: Matt