For those looking for info regarding Rhode Island’s Medical Marijuana Program, here are the details.

The Rhode Island General Assembly directed the Department of Health to create a medical marijuana program (MMP). The “Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Act” was enacted on January 3, 2006 (Public Laws 05-442 and 05-443. To see the law click on the following link: Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Law

The MMP will permit persons with debilitating medical condition(s) to use marijuana if a physician certifies in writing that the marijuana may mitigate the symptoms of the condition(s) and that the potential benefits of using medical marijuana would likely outweigh the health risks to the patients. The Medical Marijuana Act provides registered patients and caregivers with authority, under certain circumstances, to possess a limited amount of marijuana without violating state law. The Medical Marijuana Act does not alter federal statutes and regulations prohibiting the possession and use of marijuana.

Registration Requirements:

To access the Rules and Regulations for registration please click on the link below:

Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Program Restrictions & Requirements (.pdf file)

Anyone in this state who qualifies for medical marijuana should immediately get involved in your area. Become a medical marijuana patient today.

Cannabis is and will forever be medicine. No law can change that fact. It was medicine before this country (America) and it will be around long after you and I are dead. Man cannot change this plants reason for existence and no legislation can strip away its magical medicinal properties and natural healing abilities.

What is medical cannabis?

Medical cannabis refers to the use of the Cannabis sativa plant as a physician-recommended herbal therapy as well as synthetic THC and cannabinoids. So far, the medical use of cannabis is legal only in a limited number of territories, including Canada, Belgium, Australia, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain, and some U.S. states. This usage generally requires a prescription, and distribution is usually done within a framework defined by local laws.

Personally my interest in medical cannabis started with suffering from Migraine. And of course, living in california – which provoked me to get this web site going.

So I started digging around and educating myself about cannabis used as medicine… (more…)

Anyone else notice the irony of FDA warnings these days?

I was looking at Google news this morning and noticed this and couldn’t help but laugh-out-loud. The irony of these two articles being next to each other, and them both being about FDA warnings… Priceless!

The FDA refuses to issue black box warnings on epilepsy medicine (they also use this same medicine for Migraine’s) despite conclusive evidence stating the medicine did in fact increase suicidal thoughts, but they will issue a warning about…. (drum roll please) Jalapenos!

Now I am not… (more…)

In a symbolic move of East united with West – Reps. Maurice Hinchey, D-N.Y., and Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., hope to amend a Justice Department spending bill to forbid use of any money for prosecuting patients using marijuana in states with medical marijuana laws protecting patients. Stopping the use of funds for prosecutions is the best way to stop this abuse of the system.

At least as long as President Bush is in charge, the federal government is unlikely to advance medicine’s use of marijuana. Absent common sense leadership in the White House, Congress should force the Justice Department to abandon prosecutions of possession for medically prescribed marijuana in states that allow the compassionate use of the drug.

Bipartisan sponsors will try to win House approval for a measure to guarantee no such abusive prosecutions in this state and the others with medical marijuana laws. Reps. Maurice Hinchey, D-N.Y., and Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., hope to amend a Justice Department spending bill to forbid use of any money for prosecuting patients using marijuana in those states.

As authors of a guest op-ed Tuesday noted, some members of the Washington congressional delegation previously have opposed the measure. A year ago, Reps. Norm Dicks, Doc Hastings, Rick Larsen, Dave Reichert, Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Adam Smith rejected this assurance to people sick enough to receive marijuana prescriptions. To their credit, Reps. Brian Baird, Jay Inslee and Jim McDermott opposed the wasteful use of federal funds.

In this state, where a people’s initiative has offered compassion for a decade, the minimum expectation should be for every member of the congressional delegation to support the measure. While we wait for more science and less politics on medical marijuana, no patient should fear prosecution.

There is no need to waste millions of dollars prosecution patients who have been told by a doctor they should use marijuana for their pain or suffering. Push forward with this, you have the support of the people.

California voters have mandated public approval and citizen support for medical marijuana, and city officials are bound by state laws. The state of California has approved medical marijuana and it is required now for counties and cities to set up dispensary regulations and allow local patients safe access to doctor-approved medical cannabis.

Fresno County Supervisors tackled the controversial topic of medical marijuana this week.

On Tuesday, supervisors voted that medical marijuana patients will have to go elsewhere for i.d. cards.

The issues caused a major debate amongst the supervisors, “I’m not gonna vote for it until I get the appellate court, I’m gonna say that right up front. Until I have the information that clarifies it, I’m not gonna support it,” said Fresno County Supervisor Judith Case.

“Right now the law says that we’re supposed to do this, I mean it mandates that we do this,” countered Supervisor Susan Anderson.

In 1996 California voters passed Proposition 215, requiring counties to issue the medical marijuana cards to legitimate patients.

Since then, 40 of the 58 state counties have started the i.d. Program, including Merced, Tulare and Kern Counties. Fresno County though, has yet to get on board.

Dr. Terry Brown, a local doctor who attended the meeting and supports the use of medical marijuana, says the i.d. cards would make it easier for local law-enforcement to identify legitimate users.

“I’m incredibly anti-drug, I’m boarded in preventive medicine. It’s time as a society that we really look into marijuana more effectively and I think that’s gonna happen because the numbers of patients are becoming overwhelming.”

Fresno Counties’ Board of Supervisors is not the first set of lawmakers to take issue with the i.d. program; two years ago San Diego Supervisors sued to overturn Prop. 215. A superior court judge later ruled against that lawsuit.

First off, yes – these people are bound by law and the voters to supply medical marijuana cards to those patients who qualify. Demanding sick people to “go elsewhere” is wrong. Imagine telling cancer patients who can barely make it to the department of health or the doctors office, that they need to “go to another city” because local officials do not want to provide adequate and safe access for patients to get medical marijuana through an ID card system that protects both law enforcement and the patients?

The medical marijuana cards help officers know who is legally using cannabis and those who are distributing and selling it illegally. By denying this card system to be in place is no different than side-stepping state law, and continuing to fuel the fire under the black market marijuana on the streets of our cities. It is mandated this program be set forward, the longer these city official postpone the effort more patients will suffer.

What a shame that in a state like California patients are still having to fight for something as simple as the card system when it was approved so long ago and is working in so many counties already across California.

At least doctors are acknowledging the amount of patients coming forward, because the numbers of medical marijuana patients is growing. If we do not come out of the shadows now, when will we? Do your part, speak the truth and help others understand the importance of medical marijuana. Patient numbers are growing and more and more law enforcement agencies are siding with the patients – the time is now.

I think 71 ounces for a two month supply is the perfect amount that should be allowed for those who need medical marijuana. Using the cannabis in its “cooked” form is the best way – safe, and works perfect for nausea when its hard to keep food down in the first place. A good snack made from your favorite medicine aids many patients day in and day out. So in Seattle we are glad to see this amount being brought up – you can easily use this amount when cooking your medicine.

SEATTLE — Many using medical marijuana said the Health Department’s current amount of how much can be possessed legally is too little.

Currently, patients can possess 24 ounces in a 60-day period to relieve pain or nausea, but some users say the rule is too restrictive.

“The 24 ounces is low for the most sick in our society. Those that are eating Cannabis for cancer remission, for example, or for the pain associated with it,” said medical marijuana user Muraco Kyashna-Tocha.

Patients said 71 ounces is how much someone who is in severe pain would have to eat to get as much active ingredients from the plants as they would from a prescription substitute called Marinol.

The state said the final rules won’t be set on medical marijuana until after a public hearing on August 25.

Any medical marijuana patient who uses their medicine daily and throughout the day can easily consume this same amount – it need not be limited to those in “severe pain” – however it is agreed that this is a good amount to allow patients to possess. Many patients choose to use cannabis in its cooked form and stay away from smoking pipes, bongs, or even the doctor recommended vaporizers, especially cancer victims or those suffering from nausea who would like to eat something. There have been numerous reports regarding how effective marijuana brownies are with giving cancer patients not only an appetite, but the desire to lead a more joyful daily existence.

These patients need not just our support, but compassion and our fight should always be for those who need to use this plant daily as medicine. Whether smoking it through a bong, using a vaporizer, or eating “pot brownies” one can easily use 1/2 to 1 ounce of marijuana in a day so this amount of 71 ounces for a two month supply is a perfect place to start on negotiating patient marijuana allowance.

There is a big misunderstanding among the general public regarding medical marijuana, although most American support the idea of medical marijuana – there is always room for improvement in public relations regarding understanding medical marijuana.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Like other universities, Oaksterdam offers wide-eyed students an enlightening classroom experience to spark their curiosity.

In this case, though, they learn how to greet DEA agents after a residence is forcibly entered and how to make the perfect pot brownie for a homework assignment.

And the diploma confers the status of certified “budtender.”

Marijuana devotees pack classes at a unique trade school that teaches how to grow and process marijuana, use the drug in baked goods and manage medical-marijuana dispensaries.

Ilia Gvozdenovic, chancellor of the school, describes the non-accredited institution as a much-needed source of knowledge about marijuana in an age of misunderstanding.

“It’s kind of like the wild West,” said Gvozdenovic, alluding to the conflict and confusion surrounding the California law allowing the sale of medical marijuana, and the refusal of the federal government to acknowledge it.

“To me, the issue is we need better training for folks.”

The school, founded in November, already boasts about 500 graduates. It stands in a part of downtown Oakland nicknamed “Oaksterdam,” where pot clubs and cafes line the streets as in Amsterdam, Netherlands, where smoking marijuana and hashish is tolerated.

Just teaching people how to grow and use marijuana isn’t enough to draw the wrath of the federal government, said Sarah Pullen, a Los Angeles spokeswoman for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

“If they’re not distributing, selling or cultivating marijuana, I would imagine they’re not violating any federal laws,” she said.

There should also be more info out there regarding the use of vaporizers instead of “smoke” related methods of consuming medical cannabis.

The bottom line is Americans believe doctor’s should be able to prescribe medical marijuana to patients and we should all help do our part in helping the general public understand medical marijuana and why it not only should be allowed, but supported.

(Oregon) – With a doctor’s prescription and a little backyard space you can turn your backyard into a medicinal garden providing patients with medicine. Here is something I found this morning regarding a patient having to protect and defend himself against people trying to stop him from growing his own natural and 100% legal medicinal cannabis.

Stephen Vinzant says he has been growing marijuana at his residence legally for three years and has a state-issued medical marijuana card to prove it.

His next-door neighbors — who run a counseling center for recovering drug addicts — are not impressed.

Their differences will get a public airing Monday when Phoenix Counseling Center owner Keziah Hinchen will attempt to convince City Council members that they should put an end to Vinzant’s outdoor pot crop.

Hinchen plans a presentation to the council outlining the difficulty of assisting people with substance abuse issues while a “fresh crop is growing right next door.”

Vinzant said he moved to the property three years ago, at which time he began growing the state-allowed crop of 12 mature plants and 36 immature plants.

Half of the plants are for Vinzant’s mother, who suffers from chronic restless leg syndrome and the other half are for Vinzant, a Vietnam-era vet who said he suffers from post-traumatic stress, a bad back and arthritis.

During the past two growing seasons, Vinzant said, “no one squawked about anything.”

Then the treatment center changed ownership, a client discovered the plants during last year’s harvest and, Vinzant said, “totally freaked out.”

Hinchen said the counseling center serves as an extended campus for local schools by providing services to adolescents with substance abuse issues “and something like 85 to 95 percent of them have issues with marijuana.”

“So here’s this guy and he’s got this great big marijuana garden in his backyard,” Hinchen said. “The plants are 20 feet away from the fence — 20 feet away from people who have addiction issues. When it starts getting ripe, you can smell it. So here we’re saying, ‘Stay away from marijuana’ and here it is. They smell it, they see it . . . it’s right there!”

The problem with the above way of thinking is that just because medicinal marijuana is there, does not mean they should show no control and forget about it. Alcoholics enter grocery stores all day long and alcohol is available everywhere that ex-drinkers frequent. Marijuana is medicine, these people cannot stop a patient who is within his legal rights and within state law from gowing his own medicinal cannabis. He even built a cage around the plants and there are fences and locks in place!

And the local police agree with me, he is within his rights and state law…

Jackson County sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Rick Valentine said state laws regarding medical marijuana use are tricky to navigate.

“I don’t know of anything in the statutes that prohibits having a medical marijuana grower next to a rehabilitation center,” he said.

“We’ve had calls where people complained about their neighbor growing medical marijuana but they’re within state law.”

And this is exactly the reason we need safe access to medicinal marijuana and regulation – to not only protect patients and users, but those citizens who live next door to patients, as well as, the officers who are caught in this drug war that is plagueing and destroying our society. Marijuana is medicine and not the evil “street drug” it has been made out to be, by forcing it underground and into the hands of the drug czars.

Patients should never be required to turn to the black market for medicine, the same way anxiety, depression, pain medicine is prescribed to Americans every day… marijuana should be available to anyone who needs it. Especially Migraine sufferers who suffer daily pain and anxiety regarding when and if an attack will occur and cause nausea at the workplace and interfering with work hours the way it has me for decades.

As usual I was looking up some info on medical marijuana and migraine’s and I came across this article called: Marijuana Vs. Migraines: Modern Medical Miracle

What I always find interesting is the lack of info out there regarding this topic. Medical marijuana is the best for migraine’s and I am glad more and more doctor’s and patients are coming out about it. As someone who has suffered with migraine for decades, I can tell you cannabis works!

Migraine headaches are possibly one of the most misunderstood maladies of man. The Merck Manual states “The cause is unknown and the pathophysiology (mechanism) is not fully understood.” Except that it has something to do with brain blood vessel dilation/constriction; nobody seems to know what is going on here. If I’m wrong about this I’m sure I will hear plenty.

To save myself professional embarrassment, I checked the Merck Manual. One would think some mad scientist produced the highly diverse pot pourri of drugs which have been used to alleviate these severe and paralyzing headaches, with nausea and vomiting, which affect some 10 million people in the U.S.

To start with, migraines are headaches but not all headaches are migraines. Many headaches can be successfully treated with aspirin or Tylenol but, if my patients are correct, they don’t touch migraines. Because of the extremely wide variety of non-effective medicines, which have been used, I take a dim view of any new medicine being heavily advertised on TV.

In my own regular medical practice I discovered that an injection of Demerol with Benadryl was effective but the patient was out of action for at least 24 hours.

When I stared seeing patients for Medical Marijuana permits, I was surprised when the first migraine patient showed up. I knew that marijuana worked for severe pain, nausea and vomiting and I knew that it also causes vasodilatation but I couldn’t quite put the two together, pharmacologically, for migraines.

The light bulb over my head lit up and I said to myself “if the patient says marijuana works for this, and they were willing to pay the $300 clinic and State fee, it must work”.

I ended up with about 30 migraine patients out of 4,000. I have since heard that the California Marijuana doctors, with some 300,000 patients, have the same experience.

I hope readers of this series will write in their own experiences about this.

A few of my personal opinions of cannabis in regards to medicating debilitating migraine headaches:

1. Unlike traditional medicine medical cannabis (when consumed through a vaporizer) produced a very fast release from the pain associated with the inflammation in the head.

2. It’s natural, unlike anything the Big-Pharma companies are selling these days. You can grow your own!

3. And unlike other medicine, it gets rid of nausea not causes it!

The reason I started this site is because of the lack of web sites on the internet about using medical marijuana for Migraine headaches. Hopefully by helping spread the word others who suffer the same may find relief through medicinal cannabis.

Would it be right to take a diabetic person and take away their medicine and lock them up?

Is it humane to take away a person’s medicine and lock them up in jail while they are suffering pain?

Louisiana needs to stop using terror tactics against patients and stop causing pain and suffering upon medical marijuana users. Louisiana law was enacted in the 70′s for marijuana patients and it’s use, but politicians have tried to bury that fact.

THIBODAUX — There was never any intent to break the law, Matthew Zugsberger says.

Louisiana does not make the same allowances for medical marijuana use as his home state of California. But the former oilfield diver was certain his privilege of possession would be honored here.

That was until Friday, when a team of state troopers, aided by Thibodaux police, raided his St. Bernard Road apartment, allegedly seizing a little over two pounds of marijuana, some hashish oil and $4,640 in cash.

Now the 32-year-old faces multiple drug charges.

He expresses no hard feelings toward law enforcement and harbors hopes that his case will, in the long run, make life easier for people like himself.

“They didn’t mistreat me at all. In fact they were very nice,” he said of the officers. “I don’t want to fight the system. I want to help refine it.”

It all began Wednesday when Troop C officers were contacted by authorities in Mendocino, Calif., who said a “large amount of marijuana” was en route to the bayou state via a private delivery service to 2316 St. Bernard Road, Apt. E.

The package, said Troop C spokesman Gilbert Dardar, was addressed to Zugsberger and “contained three large bags of marijuana.”

Troopers agreed to take delivery of the marijuana in an attempt to further the investigation, Dardar said. The shipment was intercepted and a search of Zugsberger’s apartment commenced Friday.

Zugsberger, Dardar said, admitted to officers that he paid $6,000 per pound for the marijuana, which “appeared to be very high quality with a much higher THC content.”

THC is the active ingredient in marijuana that causes intoxication.

According to Zugsberger, the high price is one indication of his argument that he is not involved in distribution.

There would be no way, he said, to make a profit selling marijuana after paying that much for it.

At $375 an ounce, he was not reselling. Streeet price for black market marijuana is under $100 an ounce, no way he could resell that stuff for that amount and make his money back. He was buying medicine that is NOT available to him where he is, and paying high cost for it!

This is exactly why cannabis needs to be allowed for medical so regulation can occur. This man should have safe access to his medicine, not have to turn to a black market and by default commit “criminal acts” by simply trying to locate his medicine.

The need for the drug, Zugsberger said, arose after a 2005 work mishap. Debris fell on him during a dive, he said, collapsing his spine.

Prescriptions for traditional painkillers didn’t do the trick, he said, because of medical complications with his stomach.

Zugsberger has a California license allowing him to posses up to 8 ounces of medicinal cannabis at any time.

The apartment where police made the seizure is leased to his wife, Teryn Richardson, an educator taking part in a New York internship. The plan was for Zugsberger to live in the Thibodaux apartment as a housesitter.

Richardson, who flew home from New York after learning of Zugsberger’s arrest, has a less charitable view of the police action.

She complains of damaged paintings, clothes strewn on the floor and money seized in the raid that belongs to her and has nothing to do with the case.

“They made it look criminal,” Richardson said.

Zugsberger said he and Richardson are suffering dire consequences. He points to a near-empty refrigerator, explaining that they cannot buy food without money.

Normally, in his work as a freelance rock hound and gold-panner in California, he is able to afford whatever he wants, including the marijuana that eases his pain enough to allow the work.

The biggest consequence of the seizure, Zugsberger said, is the pain that continues unabated.

And he cannot leave Louisiana before his July 18 court date.

“I just have to suffer because I can’t go home for treatment,” he said.

He will have to suffer pain until this is settled. Imagine if cops would take cancer patients and stick them in a cell and not allow them medicine? Whether your opinion of medical cannabis, this is inhumane treatment of people who are just looking to relieve pain and suffering of their own body.

And never forget, Louisiana has medical laws on the books, the judges and politicians may want them removed but they are there…

Louisiana law permits some limited use of marijuana if prescribed by a doctor in the state, including treatments for glaucoma and side effects of cancer therapy.

Zugsberger glibly spouts section numbers of various laws here and in California, certain that his situation falls into a loophole somewhere.

He hopes — whether through a trial or pre-trial discussions — to convince a judge to change Louisiana’s stance on medical marijuana.

Asked if he sees himself as a crusader, Zugsberger said no.

“But given the circumstances laid at my feet with this, I will not back down,” Zugsberger said. “I’ll take this to the Supreme Court.”

The state police have put out memos today claiming: “Troopers would like to remind the public that Louisiana does not have a medical marijuana law and that possession of any amount of marijuana is punishable by at least six months in jail and a fine of up to $500.00 for the first misdemeanor offense. ”

This is simply not true, the medical marijuana bill was voted on in 1991, and marijuana taxation laws were enacted in the 70s in Louisiana. People need to wake up and accept the fact that law enforcement only wished to distort the facts regarding medical cannabis, so they can continue to unleash their brutal and tyrannical metyhods of controlling a “drug” that millions use everyday, and Louisiana has already voted for it’s medicinal use. This is ridiculous and proof that society is no longer advancing in regards to scientific fact in light of the state trooper’s propaganda.

here is a quote regarding medical cannabis in Louisiana and despite the state troopers blatant public lies, Louisiana does in fact have laws regarding medical marijuana and it’s use.

As for medical marijuana, Gov. Kathleen Blanco is the latest in a long line of chief executives with a sympathetic ear for the issue. In 1978, former Gov. Edwin Edwards signed a bill allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana to those suffering from paralysis, glaucoma and cancer. The legislation also established the now-defunct Marijuana Prescription Review Board.

Former Gov. Dave Treen signed into law a similar medical marijuana bill in 1981, as did former Gov. Buddy Roemer 10 years later. While Gov. Mike Foster never saw a prescription marijuana bill land on his desk, he did vote in favor of one as a state senator.

I suggest the state troopers look up these laws and stop telling lies to the public. If the above is correct (it is) that means more than two medical marijuana related laws exist… did them up, ask some questions…

Ask questions like, why was the marijuana taxation board dismantled and never saw the light of day? Plans were in motion for medical marijuana in Louisiana decades, ago, why did it stop? Could it possibly be the big wheels of the alcohol industry that OWNS Louisiana? You can buy beer at the Zoo and Louisiana has DRIVE-THROUGH alcohol serving daquiri shops, but medical cannabis is evil?

“I think there’s a better chance that there will be a stiffening of penalties by the Legislature more than anything else because people want to be tough on crime during an election year, and that’s a shame,” he says. “As long as people want to keep paying for [the imprisonment of lawbreakers], I’m sure (Corrections Secretary) Richard Stalder will keep locking them up.”

The cops just want money for jails and guns… patients need to stand together and focus on this fight. We can win. We have a right to safe access to medical marijuana… even in good ole Louisiana.

Rep. Danny Martiny, chairman of the House Criminal Justice Committee, says it probably won’t come to that, though, unless a rogue lawmaker, liberal judge or district attorney not seeking re-election takes up the charge. He also says he would oppose any move to soften Louisiana’s marijuana laws because that’s what his constituency would want. It’s a defense Martiny says other lawmakers also could easily make.

“I don’t think there are any districts in the state with a real liberal majority that would even allow this to become an issue if their legislator brought it up,” Martiny says. “The political leanings of the state are more to the right, and for the first time in the history of the Legislature, there’s a decent chance Republicans can take over the House, and I can assure you nothing like that would pass if it happens.”

So cancer patients and people who could benefit from medical marijuana will be denied that access because of politicians and the good ole boy mindframe. The citizens of New orleans and Louisiana should be ashamed. In New Orleans you can drink yourself to death (students and deaths from alcohol happen every year in Louisiana) and Bourbon street is known for it’s public nakedness – cops look the other way and don’t arrest naked people in the street – but oh no “marijuana” is such a bad thing. Open your eyes…