Epilepsy Foundation Calls for Increased Medical Marijuana Access and Research

Epilepsy Foundation Calls for Increased Medical Marijuana Access and Research

Statement Summary

• The Epilepsy Foundation supports the rights of patients and families living with seizures and epilepsy to access physician directed care, including medical marijuana.
• The Epilepsy Foundation calls for an end to Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) restrictions that limit clinical trials and research into medical marijuana for epilepsy.
• The Epilepsy Foundation believes that an end to seizures should not be determined by one’s zip code.

WASHINGTON, DC 

Thursday, February 20, 2014

By Philip M. Gattone, President & CEO, Epilepsy Foundation, and 

Warren Lammert, Chair, Epilepsy Foundation Board of Directors

With Commentary from Orrin Devinsky, M.D., Professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, Director, NYU Comprehensive Epilepsy Center Member of Epilepsy Foundation National Board of Directors

As parents and as advocates, we feel an urgency to respond and take action on an issue that has been brought to the Epilepsy Foundation from individuals we serve across the country-- the use of marijuana to treat epilepsy. We write this with advice and support from Nathan Fountain, Chairman of our Professional Advisory Board, and with advice and support from a range of other leading epilepsy professionals and board members.

2.3 million Americans live with epilepsy, a neurological condition that includes recurring seizures. More than 1 million of them live with uncontrolled seizures. Some of these people may be helped by surgery or other non-drug treatments, but for many, no answers have been found yet. People with uncontrolled seizures live with the continual risk of serious injuries and loss of life.

The Epilepsy Foundation supports the rights of patients and families living with seizures and epilepsy to access physician directed care, including medical marijuana. Nothing should stand in the way of patients gaining access to potentially life-saving treatment. If a patient and their healthcare professionals feel that the potential benefits of medical marijuana for uncontrolled epilepsy outweigh the risks, then families need to have that legal option now -- not in five years or ten years. For people living with severe uncontrolled epilepsy, time is not on their side. This is a very important, difficult, and personal decision that should be made by a patient and family working with their healthcare team.

Treatments for epilepsy with any form of marijuana come with risks, as there is much that is not known about its effects. The consistency of available formulations also needs to be addressed. Caution is appropriate, and we strongly recommend that patients with uncontrolled seizures seek out an epilepsy specialist. However, existing therapies have real side-effects both known and unknown, and, just as there are risks with any treatment, every day without seizure control is a risk to life. Every seizure is a possible opportunity lost to live, learn, and grow.

The Epilepsy Foundation calls for an end to Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) restrictions that limit clinical trials and research into medical marijuana for epilepsy. We applaud recent decisions that have allowed clinical trials of Cannabidiol (CBD) oil, to begin in several states. Certain components of medical marijuana, including CBD, have shown effectiveness in animal studies, and there have been encouraging anecdotal reports from patients. But further research and unbiased clinical trials are needed to establish whether and in what forms medical marijuana is or is not effective and safe. Restrictions on the use of medical marijuana continue to stand in the way of this research.

The Epilepsy Foundation believes that an end to seizures should not be determined by one’s zip code. Our current situation as an epilepsy community is not acceptable. Families looking to access medical marijuana as a treatment are facing terrible decisions. One parent may move across the country to live with a child to seek this treatment. Other families may uproot entirely, including leaving their job, to move where they can access CBD oil. In the past, when therapies not yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were available abroad and left only to those who could afford to travel, we fought for compassionate access. We are here to continue the fight.

The Epilepsy Foundation will be doing the following to support improved access and research into medical marijuana:

1. Calling on the Drug Enforcement Administration to implement a lesser schedule for marijuana so that it can be more easily accessible for medical research.
2. Supporting appropriate changes to state laws to increase access to medical marijuana as a treatment option for epilepsy, including pediatric use as supported by a treating physician.
3. Supporting the inclusion of epilepsy as a condition that uses medical marijuana as a treatment option where it is currently available.
4. Supporting research on multiple forms of cannabis and seizures.

What can you do to help? Advocate for increased access and for the freedom to conduct medical research on a potentially effective treatment against seizures and epilepsy. Join with us at http://capwiz.com/efa/mlm/signup.

Here’s Our Story:

As the President & CEO and as the Chair of the Board of the Epilepsy Foundation, we are privileged to lead a nationwide network of caring volunteers and staff who work tirelessly to improve lives of individuals living with epilepsy.

We are also fathers of individuals living with epilepsy. Phil’s son has had thousands of seizures in his life and has endured two brain surgeries to stop his seizures. Warren’s daughter has a genetic form of epilepsy that is marked by severe seizures and, despite an implanted medical device and three different epilepsy medicines, endures daily waves of seizures.

Some individuals, specifically families of children with uncontrolled seizures, are using what is called cannabidiol oil, or CBD oil, and anecdotally a few are seeing remarkable results. This is truly spectacular -- anytime someone finds a treatment that stops seizures, there is cause for celebration because seizure freedom for one person means hope of seizure freedom for others.

There is still a lot we don’t know about the medical use of marijuana for epilepsy. Until clinical trials are completed, doctors and patients will not know whether medical marijuana or CBD will on balance harm someone or help someone with epilepsy. We are advocating for the rights of patients and families to determine with their doctor if this is an appropriate therapy for them, but we recognize the unknowns and the difficulty of this decision for an individual patient.

There is an obvious and urgent need for research. The Epilepsy Foundation is proud that we are currently funding an important research study to learn more about the effect of a form of cannabis on individuals living with uncontrolled epilepsy.

As fathers, we know the pain of watching our children experience uncontrolled seizures.

We know how epilepsy impacts development in children for whom no available current treatment has been successful.

We know about the dangers that can occur when families are forced to leave medical systems and physicians they know to move to other states.

We know seizures not only affect the individual enduring seizures, it also impacts siblings, parents, grandparents, kids and grandchildren, other loved ones and friends.

We know the difference between having recurring seizures and not having seizures can mean the difference between life and death.

Warren’s daughter is fortunate to be enrolled in a clinical trial of CBD. We do not know if this will help Sylvie but know the cost of her unrelenting seizures. Weighing the issue with her doctor, we decided the potential benefits outweigh the risks. Other parents and other individuals living with potentially devastating seizures should have the same opportunity to make that determination.

If an epilepsy patient and their doctor feel that marijuana is their best treatment option then they need to have safe, legal access to medical marijuana and they need that access now.

Commentary
Medical Marijuana: We Need Proof and Compassion
Orrin Devinsky, M.D., Professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, Director, NYU Comprehensive Epilepsy Center; Member of Epilepsy Foundation National Board of Directors

There is an enormous unmet need for better treatments for children and adults with epilepsy. Approximately one-third of people with epilepsy continue to suffer from seizures despite the best medical, dietary, and surgical therapies. For those with treatment-resistant epilepsy, the enormous toll includes the direct and potentially deadly consequences of the seizures, which are compounded by the disabling physical, cognitive and behavioral side effects from high doses of multiple antiepileptic drugs. Despite advances in epilepsy therapy over the past decades, our progress remains painfully slow and disappointing. Medical care and research fails many patients. The statement by Phil Gattone and Warren Lammert of the Epilepsy Foundation strongly advocates that there should be legal access for all epilepsy patients and their doctors who feel that marijuana is their best treatment option. I agree.

In a recent Op-Ed piece in the New York Times, my colleague Daniel Friedman and I emphasized 1) the need for randomized controlled trials, considered the gold standard for clinical trials, to better understand the safety and effectiveness of any drug or combination of drugs – whether derived from a marijuana plant or synthesized in a lab, 2) the need for changes in how the Drug Enforcement Agency classifies marijuana and its constituents as Schedule 1 drugs. This is much too restrictive based on the scientific data, especially for cannabidiol (CBD) – the major non-psychoactive component of marijuana, and 3) while we await scientific studies, that marijuana products be made available to pediatric and adult patients with treatment-resistant epilepsy.

Charlotte Figi, who has brought this story to the forefront, suffers from Dravet Syndrome, a genetic disorder that often causes severe epilepsy. Medical marijuana, high in CBD and low in THC, has been reported to cause a dramatic reduction in her seizures and eliminate her need for seizure medications. Caring for epilepsy patients for 25 years, I have seen firsthand the devastation that uncontrolled epilepsy can bring. In the last 2 years, two of my patients with Dravet Syndrome died from sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP).

Data from animal studies showing CBD and THC can stop seizures, stories like Charlotte’s, and the tremendous unmet need led me to organize the first international symposium on cannabidiol for epilepsy at NYU in October 2013, to provide testimony for compassionate use for marijuana to several state legislatures, and to work as a researcher (without consulting fees or salary support) to assess CBD as an epilepsy therapy. For our initial study for 25 pediatric and young adult patients, we have received inquiries from more than 500 families and patients.

We stand at an unusual inflection point where families are demanding access to a medication that may or may not be beneficial, and for which the side effects may be less than many medications prescribed by doctors; the medical community lacks convincing efficacy or safety data for children with epilepsy; and the Drug Enforcement Agency’s overly conservative scheduling of marijuana hamstrings research and access. Yet there should be caution for both expectations and potential side effects. Humility is essential in trying to understand something for which we lack solid evidence. Both doctors and patients are equally biased and the greater the expectation, the greater the potential for bias. We urgently need data from randomized controlled trials where the biases of companies, doctors, patients, and parents are meticulously removed.

We need to make a balanced decision about compassionate use. If I were Charlotte Figi’s parents and lived in Colorado I would have done exactly what they did. And as a doctor, I would gladly prescribe marijuana products for many of my patients who failed existing therapies if it were legal in my state. Trying marijuana or related compounds should be regarded like any other experimental treatment – a shared decision between patient/parent and doctor, that takes into account the severity of disease, risk and benefits of treatment, and existence of alternate treatment options, all guided by the principle of "first do no harm”. Until we have the scientific data, we should make medical marijuana available to physicians who care for people with treatment-resistant epilepsy and their patients.

Epilepsy: CURE Promotes Research on CBD-Rich Marijuana. Need for Research on Drug Providing Hope for People with Epilepsy

CURE Promotes Research on CBD-Rich Marijuana  Need for Research on Drug Providing Hope for People with Epilepsy

CURE Promotes Research on CBD-Rich Marijuana
Need for Research on Drug Providing Hope for People with Epilepsy

As the news of the positive outcomes for some children with uncontrollable epilepsy who have been given a marijuana strain rich in cannabidiol (CBD) - the major non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana - has spread, desperate parents of children with epilepsy have been clamoring for more information and a chance for their children to try the treatment.

Despite the fear that CBD-rich marijuana extracts can increase the risk of serious psychiatric disorders and long-term cognitive problems, we believe that the serious long- term effects that accompany the use of anti-epileptic drugs and a lifetime of intractable seizures cannot be ignored. The positive results that some people with epilepsy have been seeing from CBD-rich marijuana extracts are giving so many parents what they have been lacking for so long – hope.

Many people with severe epilepsy have tried a myriad of mind-numbing medications, brain surgeries, invasively implanted electrical stimulation devices, diets and alternative therapies, with little to no relief of their symptoms. While there may be some harmful effects from these CBD-rich marijuana extracts, they must be weighed against the very real dangers and challenges a constantly seizing child faces every day – a child who has no other treatments left to try.

Scientists and physicians have been quick to warn of the dangers of the marijuana extract because CBD use in people with epilepsy has yet to be clinically evaluated, due in part to the tight restriction the FDA and DEA have placed on marijuana and its compounds. It is currently classified as a Schedule 1 drug – the strictest level of regulation for a controlled substance. (see sidebar)

The United States Controlled Substances Act

Under the United States Controlled Substances Act, Schedule I substances are those that have the following findings:

A.	The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse.
B.	The drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.
C.	There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.

At CURE, we believe that there must be more research done on marijuana rich in CBD. At the present time, regulatory hurdles make it difficult for researchers to gain access to marijuana rich in CBD, but it is not impossible. There is no debate that the hoops researchers must jump through to obtain access to marijuana, or any chemical found in it, are hindering scientific advancement, and CURE is committed to helping researchers overcome these obstacles to advance research in this important area.

CURE recognizes that CBD and/or medical marijuana are not an answer for all children with epilepsy. Much more needs to be done to find treatments and a cure for all forms of epilepsy, which affects more people than multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and Parkinson's combined – yet receives fewer federal dollars per patient than each of these. But parents and researchers are cautiously optimistic that this may be a promising new treatment on the horizon for some people. In fact, in true scientific spirit, scientists would no doubt desire to test not only pure CBD, but also high CBD/low THC cannabis, pure THC and other types of medical marijuana in epilepsy in order to clearly define the efficacy of these and other combinations on seizure control and the genesis of epilepsy.

Unfortunately, time is not on the side of many of these children with unrelenting seizures. Of course parents are going to do anything they can to help their children, even face the unknown, because the effects of long term, uncontrolled seizures are known – continued regression, intellectual disability, and even death. Safety and efficacy studies will take years to complete, and rightly so, but until then, compassionate use should be made available to the families suffering from severe, intractable epilepsy.

CBD and Epilepsy

The use of a marijuana strain rich in cannabidiol (CBD) in epilepsy is a complex issue and CURE’s understanding of the myriad of perspectives around this issue continue to evolve. As the leading private funder of epilepsy research, CURE continues to discuss new and innovative ways to navigate the regulatory issues around CBD access for research purposes.

Marijuana, and its components are classified as Schedule 1 drugs by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). Because of this Schedule 1 designation, it is difficult to conduct epilepsy research using these agents, but it’s not impossible. CURE applauds those currently doing CBD research, some of whom are highlighted below, and continues to work with our many research, medical, government, and constituent partners to identify solutions that will move research even further in this important area.

No single organization tracks all research studies of medical marijuana and marijuana-based drugs and herbs and CURE hopes to be an eminent source of information on this topic.

Cannabinoid Published Research Highlights

Pediatricians Urge DEA to Reclassify Medical Marijuana to Boost Research
For the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency reclassify marijuana so that more research can be conducted in the hopes of finding benefits for children. The influential medical society also proposes that marijuana should be made available on a compassionate use basis for children with debilitating or life-threatening illnesses.

Specifically, the AAP wants marijuana to be removed from the DEA’s Schedule 1 listing for controlled substances, which are not considered to have any “currently accepted medical use in the U.S., a lack of accepted safety for under medical supervision and a high potential for abuse.” Other drugs in this category include heroin, acid and ecstasy.
http://blogs.wsj.com/

Report of a parent survey of cannabidiol-enriched cannabis use in pediatric treatment-resistant epilepsy
The authors report on a survey which explored the use of cannabidiol-enriched cannabis in a small number of children with treatment-resistant epilepsy. Sixteen (84%) of the 19 parents reported a reduction in their child's seizure frequency while taking cannabidiol-enriched cannabis. Of these, two (11%) reported complete seizure freedom, eight (42%) reported a greater than 80% reduction in seizure frequency, and six (32%) reported a 25-60% seizure reduction. Other beneficial effects included increased alertness, better mood, and improved sleep. Side effects included drowsiness and fatigue. The authors conclude that safety and tolerability data for cannabidiol-enriched cannabis use among children are not available and objective measurements of a standardized preparation of pure cannabidiol is needed to determine whether it is safe, well tolerated, and efficacious at controlling seizures in this pediatric population with difficult-to-treat seizures. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24237632

As interest grows, CURE anticipates and welcomes research proposals by qualified biomedical researchers that will accelerate the discovery of transformative, disease-modifying therapies for patients and families.

This includes investigations into the effectiveness of using CBD to treat various syndromes of epilepsy. Interested researchers are welcome to submit proposals during our regular grant cycles.

Cannabis and other illicit drug use in epilepsy patients
This study aimed to assess the prevalence of illicit drug use among epilepsy patients and its effects on the disease. The authors systematically interviewed epilepsy outpatients at a tertiary epilepsy clinic. Predictors for active cannabis use were analyzed. Overall, 310 subjects were enrolled; 63 (20.3%) reported consuming cannabis after epilepsy was diagnosed, and 16 (5.2%) used other illicit drugs. Cannabis consumption mostly did not affect epilepsy (84.1%). Seizure worsening was observed with frequent illicit (non-cannabis) drug use in 80% of cases. Cannabis use does not seem to affect epilepsy; however, frequent use of other drugs increases seizure risk. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23311572

Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channel block by cannabinoids does not confer anticonvulsant effects
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-psychoactive, well-tolerated, anticonvulsant plant cannabinoid, although its mechanism(s) of seizure suppression remains unknown. Here, researchers investigate the effect on voltage-gated Na(+) (NaV) channels, a common anti-epileptic drug target. The authors found that CBD is an NaV channel blockers at small concentrations in human and murine neurons and recombinant cells but that NaV blockade does not correlate with anticonvulsant effects.www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24642454

CURE will continue to keep a sharp focus on new research into the use of medical marijuana, CBD and other marijuana-derived compounds for the use in epilepsy. As the premier epilepsy research organization, we hope to continue to play a role in disseminating the information we gather, using it to guide us as we seek to push research further, faster and for the benefit of epilepsy patients of all ages.

Polly and Olivia VanderWoude (3.5) attended Governor Cuomo's bill signing ceremony in New York City July 7th, making New York the 23rd state to allow medical marijuana. Polly says "It has been an incredible journey to be a part of this advocacy effort. I am honored to have not just made this an option for my own daughter, but for thousands of New Yorkers suffering from intractable epilepsy and other serious medical conditions."

New York Mom Advocates for Passage of Treatment for Children with Epilepsy

Three-year-old Olivia VanderWoude has suffered uncontrollable seizures all but 14 days since she was diagnosed with epilepsy at 2-months-old.

Olivia has Aicardi Syndrome, an extremely rare and random genetic mutation. Her mother Polly VanderWoude said that Olivia has been on multiple medicines, a special ketogenic diet and has a vagus nerve stimulator, all to no avail. The types of seizures Olivia has - infantile spasms - are notoriously difficult to control and harsh on the child's developmental progress.

But there is a new treatment that Polly believes could provide relief for Olivia’s relentless seizures. The problem is it’s illegal in New York, the state the family lives in.

Polly wants to give Olivia a marijuana strain rich in cannabidiol (CBD), the major non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. Epilepsy patients who have used the CBD-rich marijuana treatment have shown tremendous progress and a drastic reduction in seizures. 

“I was skeptical at first, but families are trying medical cannabis and it is working, including several girls with Aicardi Syndrome.” Polly said.

Currently, there are 20 states with legal medical marijuana programs and 13 states with pending legislation. New York is one of those states. Some families, not willing to wait for their state to legalize medical marijuana, have picked up and relocated to where they can get access to this high CBD marijuana. That is not an option for the VanderWoudes. Having recently relocated to New York, they know first hand the challenges of moving with a medically complicated child.

SB2636 SIGNED INTO LAW IN ILLINOIS!

At a ceremony on July 20, Gov. Pat Quinn signed the law which adds seizures to the list of conditions that can be treated with medical-grade cannabis. It stipulates that adults who suffer from epilepsy will be permitted to smoke medical marijuana, but children will be able to take “non-smokable forms of medical marijuana.” The law holds much potential to alleviate the suffering of people with intractable epilepsy. It will go into effect in January 2015.

News: Chicago Tribune, Sun-Times

NY SENATE PASSES MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL INTO LAW

The New York Senate passed a bill legalizing access to medical marijuana on June 20 in a 49-10 vote. Governor Andrew Cuomo was adamant that no smoking of the drug would be permitted and the State Health Department would oversee the program. Diseases qualifying patients for access to and use of the medical marijuana currently include AIDS, cancer, epilepsy and several serious degenerative conditions.
News: NY State Governor, NY Daily News

Instead, Polly has become a fierce advocate for the Compassionate Care Act, the legislation that would make medical marijuana legal in New York, where she said 88 percent of its residents favor legalization of medical marijuana.

“It’s incredibly frustrating when there is such wide support from the constituency base but the legislators are failing to act,” Polly said.

Part of the issue with the legalization of CBD-rich marijuana is the fact that there is little research so far on its long-term effects. Research has been difficult because marijuana is classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as a Schedule 1 substance, “with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Cocaine is classified as a Schedule 2 substance, “with a high potential for abuse, less abuse potential than Schedule I drugs.”

“You can research cocaine, but you can’t research medical marijuana,” Polly said.

And with the lack of research, many legislators are hesitant to get behind this treatment. Even many doctors and scientists warn of the potential dangers of medical marijuana use, citing a potential increase in the risk of psychiatric disorders and long-term cognitive problems. But the rewards of this treatment, a dramatic decrease in seizures, far outweigh it risks for Polly and the VanderWoude family - and for many families advocating for its use.

“It would be ideal if there was sufficient research, but it’s impossible to wait for that to happen knowing there is something out there that could help her today.” Polly said. “For parents like me, this treatment gives us hope that we can improve the quality of life for our children.”

And for Olivia, who has suffered a lack of developmental progress which Polly feels is due in large part to her seizures and the side effects of her seizure medication, this last-resort treatment is one worth the potential risks.

“Nothing I have heard about marijuana makes me afraid to give it to my daughter,” Polly said. “It’s a lot less scary than most of the other FDA-approved medicines she is on.”

CURE Promotes Research on CBD-Rich Marijuana Need for Research on Drug Providing Hope for People with Epilepsy

Health Benefits of CBD-rich hemp oil

Health Benefits of CBD-rich hemp oil

Maine Medical Marijuana Dispensary Shows Support For Study That Says THC Reduces Rate of Alzheimer's Disease

Maine Medical Marijuana Dispensary Shows Support For Study That Says THC Reduces Rate of Alzheimer's Disease

The Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute in Florida, recently conducted a preclinical study that showed evidence that THC, the psycho-active component in marijuana that results in a 'high', may reduce the speed at which Alzheimer's disease progresses. And a Maine medical marijuana dispensary group, The Wellness Connection, is doing all it can to show its support for the study by helping get the word out, and promoting it at a recent information session held in Gardiner.

The information session not only discussed and detailed the Florida study, it also covered delivery methods and dosing protocols, for an Alzheimer's patient medicating with marijuana. “Patients in Maine don’t seem to know about the benefits of THC delaying Alzheimer’s progression,” said Becky DeKeuster of Wellness Connection of Maine, in a news release. 

Findings about the possible therapeutic effect of THC for Alzheimer’s patients was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease by the neuroscientists at the University of South Florida’s Byrd institute, in July. “These sets of data strongly suggest that THC could be a potential therapeutic treatment option for Alzheimer’s disease through multiple functions and pathways,” wrote lead author of the study, neuroscientist Chuanhai Cao, in the findings.Research showed that that extremely low doses of THC is able to reduce the production of amyloid beta - a protein that develops early in the disease - and enhanced mitochondrial function, and inhibited aggregation associated with the disease, said Cao in an article on the University of South Florida’s website. 

“Are we advocating that people use illicit drugs to prevent the disease? No. It’s important to keep in mind that just because a drug may be effective doesn’t mean it can be safely used by anyone. However, these findings may lead to the development of related compounds that are safe, legal and useful in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease,”  added Neel Naba, co-author of the study.

To date, there is no recorded treatment known to effectively cure, or delay the progress, of Alzheimer's disease. Certainly any study that shows such promise deserves large-scale attention and further investigation.

“It blocks plaque build up that creates memory loss and relieves agitation and frustration associated with the onset of the disease,” DeKeuster explained. Sadly there are more than 5 million people living in the U.S., about 37,000 in Maine, living with degenerative effects of Alzheimer's disease.

Jason Draizin, CEO of MarijuanaDoctors.com, New-York based online company that helps patients in each of the legals states, find a marijuana doctor, said that he believes the more research is done the more wonders will be discovered in this once forsaken weed. "Alzheimer's is a progressively degenerative disease, that can often leave a patient consumed with anxiety, panic, and potentially hysteria. Its a cruel condition that so little is understood or known about. Finally there is some research which may at least hold some potential hope for patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease."

NEW YORK STATE MEDICAL MARIJUANA LEGISLATION DISAPPOINTS NEARLY EVERYONE

NEW YORK STATE MEDICAL MARIJUANA LEGISLATION DISAPPOINTS NEARLY EVERYONE

Last week, medical marijuana advocates gathered at Hostos Community College in the Bronx to voice their opinions on New York State’s Compassionate Care Act. Passed by state legislation in June 2014, hopes were high that the CCA could bring relief to New Yorkers with debilitating health conditions; however, advocates who gathered last week were in their clear agreement that the Compassion Care Act, well, sucks.

Because we like to find the flaws in things, we’ve broken down the various ways in which the Compassionate Care Act is lacking.

Drug Administration: No Smoking, No Special Brownies

Under the proposed regulations, medical marijuana will not be administered through traditional methods–smoking and edibles are explicitly prohibited. Of the 22 states in which marijuana is dispensed medicinally, Minnesota is the only other state to ban smoking as a route of administration.

In fact, medical marijuana will only be legally distributed via oral/sublingual administration, vaporization, oral capsules, or “any additional form and route of administration approved by the commissioner.” Thus, decisions about the most appropriate form of consumption for each special snowflake of a patient is left up to, not the patient’s attending physician, but rather the New York State Department of Health.

Not only is smoking the most common administration of marijuana, but the Department of Health’s prohibition of smoking and edibles can make it more difficult for low-income patients to receive treatment. Vaporization requires the purchase of a vaporizer, which any stoner can vouch to be a costly purchase.

Limited Eligibility: You’re Probably Not Getting A Prescription

Unlike other states–in which medical marijuana can be used to treat any number of diseases–the proposed regulations would limit one’s eligibility based on either the diagnosis of one of the following “specific severe debilitating or life-threatening condition(s):

• Cancer
• HIV/AIDS
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
• Damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity
• Epilepsy
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Neuropathies
• Huntington’s Disease

Or any complications resulting from other medical treatments that result in the following:

• Wasting Syndrome
• Severe/Chronic Pain
• Severe Nausea
• Seizures
• Persistent Muscle Spasms

…and, of course, “such conditions as are added by the Commissioner.”

Big Brother The Commissioner has yet to determine whether medical marijuana should be prescribed to treat Alzheimer’s Disease, muscular dystrophy, dytonia, PTSD, and rheumatoid arthritis; however, a decision is to be made within eighteen months.

Conditions for which medical marijuana is often prescribed–such as anxiety, insomnia, migraines, and depression, are not mentioned.

Limited Distribution Will Make It Nearly Impossible to Actually Get Your Medication

Under the CCA, only 20 dispensaries will be permitted to provide medicinal marijuana for the entirety of New York State. These dispensaries are to be run by five organizations, each of which can open four dispensaries. That’s one dispensary per 987,500 New York State residents.

In California–where I know from firsthand experience that it’s nearly always easier to find a 420 Health Clinic than it is to find a Del Taco–there are over 2,100 medical dispensaries: that’s one dispensary per 18,467 Californians; however, a Californian who is so inclined can legally grow their own cannabis pursuant to specific regulations. There’s no stipulations in the New York legislation for the legal cultivation of cannabis for personal use.

Advocates have introduced Resolution 418 in hopes of altering the bill to improve accessibility and cover more conditions, but there’s no telling what will happen at this point.