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Chronic Illness

Submitted by Phusion on Wed, 05/21/2008 - 19:04

The Stranger has news of yet another(story) liver transplant denied due to medical Marijuana use.

"People are following the law and they're getting screwed," says Lennon Garon, the son of liver patient Timothy Garon. "If alcohol was illegal and marijuana was legal, my dad would be alive."

According to statements from Virginia Mason and the UW, which won't discuss individual patients' cases, the main reason for denying transplants to marijuana smokers is the risk that the organ might be rejected. According to officials at both hospitals, a mold occasionally found in marijuana and tobacco, called aspergillus, could foster new infections in additional organs.

Because the hospitals treat medical marijuana as an addictive drug, they believe transplant patients may be unable to stop smoking pot after the transplant—allowing the harmful mold to destroy the new organ.

You have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!! Mold?


Medical marijuana: How Much Is Enough?

Submitted by Phusion on Wed, 05/21/2008 - 18:59
The Seattle Times posted a story on their recent battle with the limits put on medical Marijuana users, for how much medicine they can possess.
Faced with a legislative mandate to spell out what constitutes a "60-day supply" by July 1, the department in February briefed Gov. Christine Gregoire's office on its recommendation: Patients or caregivers could possess up to 35 ounces of cultivated marijuana and be allowed a plant-growing area of 100 square feet.

Gregoire promptly directed Department of Health Secretary Mary Selecky to solicit more comment from law enforcement and medical providers. "I wouldn't say she was upset" by the amount, said Gregoire's spokesman, Pearse Edwards, but she believed input had been one-sided.
The amount of medicine is always going to be a point of contention for states with medical Marijuana laws, here in California, each county has a limit for dried and growing Marijuana. What am I allowed you ask? 3 pounds of dried medicine and 30 plants growing at my home or at a registered care giver's home.

Rep. Frank Wants To Legalize Pot

Submitted by Phusion on Fri, 04/18/2008 - 23:20
It seems that Rep. Barney Frank was not joking when he said on HBO(story) that he would introduce a bill that would allow adults to possess up to 3.5 ounces of Marijuana for personal use.
"I do not believe that the federal government should treat adults who choose to smoke marijuana as criminals," Frank said in a statement, adding that it's "not appropriate in a free society."

It seems Frank's indulgences are limited to puffing on cigars between votes. He indicated last month on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher that he does not smoke marijuana

This is the first time that Frank has pulled for the decriminalization of personal pot use since he was in the state Legislature in the 1970s.

"When I got to Congress, frankly, I was feeling more cautious," Frank told Maher. "I finally got to the point where I think I can get away with it."
Read the full story here. I think that Barney is right, we may be at a place in history that would allow the personal use of Marijuana by adults, legally.