A New York mother of a child who suffers daily seizures helped Senator Kirsten Gillibrand introduce a bill to make it easier to get medical marijuana.
“This is clearly a case of ideology getting in the way of scientific progress. The government should not prevent doctors from prescribing medicine that has shown to work.”
Seantor Gillibrand comes down clearly on the side against current federal law that makes anyone seeking medical marijuana at risk of arrest. And for Kate Hintz it could even bring down Child Protective Services on her and her daughter. Morgan suffers from a rare form of epilepsy and Kate says she’s tried many medications.
“She has trialed and failed over 10 different anti-seizure medications. Yet at best, Morgan has only gone 4 weeks seizure free. At this point we will never know what has affected her more her uncontrolled seizures or mountains of medications she has taken in her short life.”
Kate Hintz says just about all children’s hospitals are testing Cannabidiol treatments – an element of the marijuana plant supports say does not lead to any sort of high. It has shown to be effective limiting seizures and treating pain and nausea in patients of many chronic diseases and conditions. Senator Gillibrand’s bill, announced today, would basically free-up states to allow medical marijuana.
“The bipartisan bill will finally allow patients and families including veterans in those 23 states to access medical care without fear of prosecution. It also reschedules medical marijuana to a schedule II drug as opposed to a schedule I drug to allow more research”
Doctors could also more safely prescribe the treatment.
PROVISIONS OF THE BILL
(1) Recognize States’ Responsibility to Set Medical Marijuana Policy & Eliminate Potential Federal Prosecution
The CARERS Act amends the Controlled Substances Act so that states can set their own medical marijuana policies. The patients, providers and businesses participating in state medical marijuana programs will no longer be in violation of federal law and vulnerable to federal prosecution.
(2) Reschedule Marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II, Recognizing “Accepted Medical Use”
Marijuana is currently listed as a Schedule I drug, meaning it does not currently have accepted medical use in the United States. The CARERS Act moves it to Schedule II, recognizing what Americans already know: marijuana has a legitimate medical purpose.
(3) Allow States to Import Cannbidiol (CBD), Recognized Treatment for Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders
The CARERS Act amends the Controlled Substances Act to remove specific strains of CBD oil from the federal of definition of marijuana. This will allow youth suffering from intractable epilepsy to gain access to the medicine they need to control their seizures.
(4) Provide Veterans Access
Doctors in Department of Veterans Affairs facilities are currently prohibited prescribing medical marijuana. The CARERS Act would allow VA doctors to recommend medical marijuana to military veterans.
(5) Permit Financial Services and Banking for Marijuana Dispensaries
Right now, medical marijuana business is a cash business. The CARERS Act provides a safe harbor to banks and credit unions, their officers and employees that provide financial services to marijuana-related businesses that engage in activities pursuant to state law.
(6) Expand Opportunities for Research
The CARERS Act removes unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles for researchers to gain government approval to undertake important research on marijuana.
It would still be up to states to make medical marijuana legal as Governor Cuomo didlast year by executive order. There are strict guidelines outlined in the New York state law that legislates provider prescription, dispensaries and patient access. According to the law only patients suffering from specific outlined medical conditions would be able to register for medical marijuana. The route of delivery to the patient for the drug would only be thru cannabidiol oil, not by smoking.
Although the legislation passed in July of 2014, the infrastructure of the program is in limbo due to the fact that there are no provisions yet on where the drug would come from. It is not legal to grow in New York State and it is illegal to transport it thru state lines. Compassionate Care New York is working alongside Senator Kirsten Gillibrand clear the path in implementing the states legislation.
