Friday, February 1, 2008

Vermont Hemp Bill Passes Committee

Legislation to allow Vermont farmers to cultivate hemp passed an important committee in the state House.

The Rutland Herald reported on Jan. 31, 2008 ("VT House OKs Hemp Farming Bill") that "Lawmakers in the House Agriculture Committee unanimously approved a bill that would allow Vermont farmers to grow hemp, a benign cousin of marijuana that boasts a variety of industrial applications.

A federal statute criminalizing the plant supercedes Vermont's legislation, so Green Mountain hemp won't go to sprout anytime soon. But advocates of the hemp bill say it positions local farmers to capitalize on the potentially profitable crop if and when the Drug Enforcement Administration finally relents. 'Eventually, the federal government is going to have to change its policy on hemp,' said Amy Shollenberger, executive director of Rural Vermont. 'We see this bill ... as making sure farmers in Vermont are on the front lines when it does.'"

According to the Herald, "Law enforcement officials in Vermont did not respond to an interview request for this story. Rep. David Zuckerman, a Burlington Progressive, chairs the House Agriculture Committee. He said Wednesday that testimony from law enforcement officials in Canada, where hemp is legal, indicate the two plants are easily distinguished. 'The reality, we've learned, is that should not be a concern,' Zuckerman said. 'Clearly, the 11-0 vote out of committee shows that the knowledge we learned created support across a broad political spectrum.'"

The Herald noted that "Lawmakers in the Agriculture Committee said they hope to see the bill go to a floor vote soon."

Cannabis and Lung Cancer Risk

Research from New Zealand underscores the need for vaporizers and development of alternative consumption methods which minimize the harms from smoking.

The Edmonton Journal carried a story from Reuters on Jan. 31, 2008 ("Cancer Risk Greater With Cannabis: Study") which reported that "In an article published in the European Respiratory Journal, the scientists said cannabis could be expected to harm the airways more than tobacco as its smoke contained twice the level of carcinogens, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, compared with tobacco cigarettes. The method of smoking also increases the risk, since joints are typically smoked without a proper filter and almost to the very tip, which increases the amount of smoke inhaled. The cannabis smoker inhales more deeply and for longer, facilitating the deposition of carcinogens in the airways."

The article, "Cannabis use and risk of lung cancer: a case-control study," was published in the European Respiratory Journal Vol. 31, No. 2. According to the abstract, "In total, 79 cases of lung cancer and 324 controls were included in the study. The risk of lung cancer increased 8% (95% confidence interval (CI) 2–15) for each joint-yr of cannabis smoking, after adjustment for confounding variables including cigarette smoking, and 7% (95% CI 5–9) for each pack-yr of cigarette smoking, after adjustment for confounding variables including cannabis smoking. The highest tertile of cannabis use was associated with an increased risk of lung cancer (relative risk 5.7 (95% CI 1.5–21.6)), after adjustment for confounding variables including cigarette smoking. In conclusion, the results of the present study indicate that long-term cannabis use increases the risk of lung cancer in young adults."

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Legal Syringe Exchanges Begin Operation In New Jersey

The first legal syringe exchanges in the state of New Jersey began operation recently.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported on Jan. 30, 2008 ("Getting Out the Word on Needle Exchange") that "In the two weeks since it launched, only seven people have signed up for the Camden Area Health and Education Center syringe-exchange program, in a city with more than its share of intravenous drug users. Camden County ranks among the top in the state for drug abusers, with 1,516 heroin and opiate users alone seeking help in 2006, according to the New Jersey Substance Abuse Monitoring System. The state had more than 22,053 people who sought treatment for heroin abuse that year. The city of Camden ranks ninth among New Jersey municipalities for residents infected with HIV/AIDS, which is commonly transmitted among intravenous drug users by sharing needles. As of June 30, 2005, there were 1,384 cases in the city, according to the New Jersey Division of HIV/AIDS Services. Newark leads the state with 12,720. Camden's is the second syringe-exchange program to open in New Jersey since passage of legislation last year aimed at reducing the spread of blood-borne diseases among intravenous drug users. The state was the last in the country to legalize needle exchanges. Philadelphia already offers the service."

According to the Inquirer, "In Atlantic City, a needle exchange opened in a drop-in HIV counseling center in November and has already registered 170 people in a state-mandated database. Exchanges are also set to open in Paterson and Newark. Part of the Atlantic City program's allure is that it is run by an established treatment facility. That exchanges are made indoors and there are free coffee and doughnuts doesn't hurt, either. In Camden, the service is run out of a van and offers only the warm hearts of workers and fresh needles."

The Inquirer noted that "In Camden, the program has drawn much less scrutiny than a proposal to move a methadone clinic from near Cooper University Hospital to a site just a few hundred yards from the needle-exchange van. On Monday, members of Camden's Sacred Heart Church gathered to oppose the relocation of the Parkside Recovery Methadone Clinic. But they had little to say about the exchange. 'The exchange is run very well and can save lives,' said Msgr. Michael Doyle of Sacred Heart, who has been in Camden for 40 years. 'This is where the drug people are,' he said, explaining that the exchange saves lives, but that he believed methadone clinics perpetuate addiction. He said he thought that moving the methadone clinic would concentrate the problems of all of Camden County in an area of the city that has struggled for years to remake itself."

Kansas Legislature to Consider Medical Marijuana Bill

Legislators in the state of Kansas will have the opportunity to consider a bill granting limited protection to some medical cannabis patients.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reported on Jan. 28, 2008 ("Bill Seeks Medical Defense of Marijuana") that A bill introduced in a Senate committee Monday would allow judges to consider a medical condition as defense of marijuana possession. Under the proposal, those with a debilitating illness arrested for the drug's possession could present in court a doctor's written certification that marijuana would offer therapeutic benefits. 'This is simply an issue of compassion,' said Laura Green, director of the Kansas Compassionate Care Coalition that helped draft the measure. The bill would not legalize or decriminalize possessing the drug."

The Capital-Journal noted that "The bill is expected to receive a hearing in mid-February."

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Marijuana Vending Machines

A new vending machine product is now available in California: medical marijuana. However, according to the January 29, 2008 Los Angeles Daily News ("Marijuana machines could be cure for inconvenience"), 'Not just anyone can pop some coins in and get some bud. The machine, developed by Los Angeles medical-marijuana dispensary owner Vincent Mehdizadeh, gives up to an ounce of pot per week only to preapproved patients. The specialized machine installed Monday at Herbal Nutrition Center - a medical-marijuana dispensary on La Cienega Boulevard - requires fingerprint identification as well as a special prepaid card."

The article states, "Mehdizadeh's machine is far from the standard potato-chip model. The black, armored box is bolted to the floor at the entrance to the dispensary. It has a card swiper, a video camera that also takes a snapshot of any user and adds it to a database, and is protected by armed security guards.Mehdizadeh said he has been trying to reach out to City Council members and persuade them that the machine is a key way to regulate the industry because it includes an automatic database. Mehdizadeh said the machines also could allow dispensaries to sell pot at lower prices because of reduced overhead costs. But even some of the most devoted defenders of medical marijuana question the idea of pot vending machines. 'This is bittersweet in that it shows great entrepreneurship - but opens up terrific avenues of ridicule,' said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. St. Pierre said that whatever happens, Mehdizadeh's machine will likely be a milestone in the medical-marijuana movement.'Of the little benchmarks over a 15-year period, this machine will probably be one of them,' he said. 'Whether they continue to exist or not."

UN Anti-Drug Agency Embraces Harm Reduction

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has explicitly endorsed harm reduction programs including syringe exchange and substitution treatment.

In its publication released Jan. 22, 2008, titled "Reducing the Adverse Health and Social Consequences of Drug Abuse: A Comprehensive Approach," the authors at UNODC conclude:


"Member States should provide both prevention/treatment opportunities and the tertiary prevention measures to reduce adverse health and social consequences, as part of a comprehensive plan. Unfortunately, due to resource limitations, some communities are not able to provide comprehensive programmes which take into account the real needs of drug abusers.

"Many substance abusers, who would be motivated to treatment but do not find accessible well-equipped treatment facilities in their neighborhood are de facto condemned to remain in a condition of dependence and to perpetuate their dependence in social exclusion. Some countries provide only selective services and do not provide harm reduction opportunities for dependent individuals who are not involved in treatment. Untreated drug dependent people, without any contact to the health care system and welfare facilities, are exposed to the highest level of risk and may cause consistent harm to themselves and society as a whole.

"Measures to reduce adverse health and social consequences should be offered in a nondiscriminatory and comprehensive programme. If they are included in a comprehensive strategy, including easy access to high quality clinical facilities, drug abusers may be more motivated to seek treatment.

'Harm reduction' measures combined with good-practice treatment facilities may prevent immediate adverse health and social consequences and be effective in the long-term reduction of drug-related harm for individuals and society."



Monday, January 28, 2008

San Antonio Authorities Arrest Syringe Exchange Workers

The Texas state legislature authorized creation of the state's first legal needle exchange, as a pilot project, in San Antonio. Local officials are blocking the plan and now harm reduction workers involved in a needle exchange there have been arrested.

The Los Angeles Times reported on Jan. 28, 2008 ("His Needle Plan Has Touched A Nerve") that "Bill Day doesn't fancy himself an outlaw -- and with his Mr. Rogers demeanor, he definitely doesn't look the part. But soon the 73-year-old lay chaplain could spend up to a year in jail for breaking a law that he considers immoral. Day hands out clean needles to drug addicts on some of the seediest streets in this south Texas city. He does it because he's convinced that it reduces human suffering by curtailing the spread of HIV, a view that has been supported by medical research for more than a decade. However, Day's actions are illegal in Texas -- the only state that has not started a needle-exchange program of some kind. So when a San Antonio police officer spotted him swapping syringes with prostitutes and junkies this month, he was arrested on drug paraphernalia charges."

According to the Times, "Neel Lane, a high-powered San Antonio lawyer who agreed to defend Day for free after learning about his case through their church, St. Mark's Episcopal, said it was time for the Lone Star State to admit it was behind the times. 'When you're the only state that doesn't have [a needle-exchange program], you're either the 2% smartest or 2% dumbest in the country,' Lane said. Though Texas is the only state that has not begun at least a pilot needle-exchange program in any city, lawmakers last year authorized one -- for San Antonio. Bexar County public health officials are studying whether to launch it, but Dist. Atty. Susan Reed has warned that she could prosecute anyone who distributes needles because she considers the act illegal. 'I'm telling [local officials], and I'm telling the police chief, I don't think they have any kind of criminal immunity,' Reed said in August, according to the San Antonio Express-News. Reed has not explained why she opposes the program, and her office did not return requests for comment. But at the request of a state lawmaker, Texas' attorney general is reviewing the dispute. Day and two associates, cited with him on Jan. 5, initially faced Class C misdemeanors, which are punishable by a fine of up to $500. But Reed's office and police plan to increase the charges to distributing drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a possible one-year jail sentence."

The Times noted that "Day's supporters say they are outraged that police and prosecutors are treating the activists as criminals. 'How silly to arrest senior citizens who are trying to stop the spread of HIV in their community,' said Jill Rips, deputy executive director of the San Antonio AIDS Foundation, which provides HIV testing and runs a hospice. 'Don't police have something better to do?' Day said he accepted the arrest as part of a process that his community must go through before it could begin a healthy debate about reducing the spread of AIDS by addicts."

Sunday, January 27, 2008

The Way We Were

When Florida Attorney Norm Kent received a form letter from Sen. Norm Coleman condemning marijuana, Kent fired off this note to his former Hofstra University smoking buddy. To find out more, check out this new CSDP public service ad.

Smoke a Joint, Lose a Job: CA Supreme Court Rules Employers Can Fire Workers for Medical Marijuana Use

The California Supreme Court has ruled that a positive drug test arising from medical marijuana use can be grounds for termination of employment.

The LA Times reported on Jan. 25, 2008 ("Workers Can Be Fired For Using Medical Pot Off Duty, Court Rules") that "The California Supreme Court weakened the effect of the state's beleaguered medical marijuana law, ruling Thursday that employers may fire workers for using physician-recommended marijuana while off duty, even if it did not hurt their job performance. Supporters of medical marijuana immediately criticized the court's 5-2 ruling, saying it undermined the 1996 law, which prohibits the state from criminalizing the medical use of the drug. Hundreds of medical marijuana users have complained that they have been fired, threatened with termination or not hired by California companies because of their drug use, according to one advocacy group. In siding with employers, the California Supreme Court said the Compassionate Use Act passed by voters and later amended by the Legislature imposed no requirements on employers."

According to the Times, "The court majority upheld the firing of Gary Ross, an Air Force veteran whose doctor recommended marijuana for chronic back pain stemming from an injury in the military and whose disability qualified him for government benefits. Ross, 45, was hired by RagingWire Telecommunications Inc. in 2001 as a systems engineer. Before taking a required drug test, Ross provided a copy of his physician's recommendation for marijuana. The company fired him a week after he started the job because his test revealed that he had used marijuana. Ross sued the company on the grounds that it failed to accommodate his disability as required under a state anti-discrimination law. He contended that he had worked without any problems at other jobs in the same field since becoming a medical marijuana user. Lower courts, however, sided with the employer."

The Times noted that "Attorney Robert M. Pattison, who represented RagingWire Telecommunications, a Sacramento data center, said the ruling resolved questions that have troubled employers about the use of medical marijuana and did "not at all" eviscerate the marijuana law. 'In fact, the court makes it clear that the point here is the medical marijuana law doesn't address employment,' Pattison said."

Here's a link to the CA Supreme Court's decision in this case.