medical marijuana in pa

This is my paper for school, and my views on why medical marijuana should be legal in pa.

Over the last 70 years there has been a feverish battle in whether or not marijuana should be legalized or not, again. Many people have fought to maintain its illegal status while others are wondering why it was made illegal at all in the first place. Some say it has strong repercussions such as harm to the brain and lungs when smoked and others insist itâ??s not as bad as people make it out to be and it has more positive effects than negative. It has been shown to be great in the medical field. I feel medical marijuana should at least be legal and that most of what is known about marijuana is mainly propaganda.
It all started after the prohibition of alcohol. Once it became apparent that alcohol was far too popular to ban, they repealed the 18th amendment. After this the people behind the prohibition found themselves in frantic because of the backlash from the public. This is they latched onto another drug that was not as popular; marijuana. The government actually began taxing it back in 1937 in an act known as the marijuana tax act. It was found to be hard to control the taxing and they began banning it all together. The government began lashing out to the public that it was a very harmful drug and caused negative effects to those who used it. Some of these effects included impaired memory, hallucinations, delusions, disorientation, low blood pressure and high heart rates which could cause a heart attack, as well as, lung impairments. I found that marijuana is constantly being compared to tobacco when it comes to the lungs and heart. If tobacco is that bad then why is it not illegal as well? Marijuana might have these negative side effects, but as for the medical field, it just might be the drug that could help more than it harms.
Marijuana is widely known to help people with pains, but there are so many other uses itâ??s unbelievable that 36 out of 50 states donâ??t allow it to be used. Pennsylvania is one of these 36 states. People are slowly realizing that medical marijuana can be a huge breakthrough in the medical field. In this year alone, DC and New Jersey have come to realize this and have passed bills legalizing it for the use as medicine. Pennsylvania denied the bill, but they are still talking about it for the 2012 elections.
I interviewed someone who I will call Bob. I met him when I was out and we just started casually talking about medical marijuana. I began asking him how he felt about medical marijuana and he told me he felt it was extremely useful and this is when he began a personal story. His sister struggled with bulimia for five years. Him and his family had to struggle with her disorder as well and placed her in two treatment centers only for her to return home and go right back to where she was before the treatment. One day he was smoking with his buddies to relieve stress and his sister walked in on them. She smoked for the first time in her life that night and next thing he knew she was in the refrigerator making herself a sandwich. Automatically he figured she was going to binge eat like he knew her to do so many times in the past. He went on to say, â??She in a way did binge eat that night, but this time, this time she chilled with me after eating and didnâ??t rush to the bathroom to puke her guts out. I was like, â??are you ok?â?? And she just sat there with me the rest of the night laughing and carrying on with me and my friends. She never did answer me when I asked that question. She just smiled.â?� After this story he concluded that yes he is for the legalization of medical marijuana in Pennsylvania and that his sister is average weight again; a weight she had never truly achieved before marijuana, and he wished she could legally obtain it for her condition.
Marijuana is used for other purposes such as cancer and glaucoma. People have reported that they can see better on marijuana and doctors have said it can prevent blindness. It also has greatly helped those with crohns disease. Patients have reported less nausea, weight gain, less vomiting and fatigue with people who had crohns. They also are able to eliminate many medications which have bad side effects when using marijuana. Itâ??s practically a wonder drug.
In todayâ??s world marijuana use has grown. At one point it seemed to decrease amongst users, but in the past three years it has maintained its numbers. In the past year alone it is reported that more than 14 million people use it on a regular basis, while more than 25 million have at least smoked it once. There are a little over 300 million people living in the United States and about 100 million of those people have at least tried marijuana. It is also the third most popular recreational drug (behind tobacco and alcohol). These numbers are huge, but the question still remains, why is marijuana illegal to begin with? The government has spent billions of dollars to ensure it remains illegal, as well as, spending money on propaganda that makes marijuana look more horrible than what it actually is. Why do I see a commercial showing people getting high and killing a kid on a bike and the next commercial is of a couple drinking alcohol and having a good time. Alcohol is considered more dangerous and addictive than marijuana. There are more than 75,000 deaths a year due to alcohol; there are no reports under any documentation that proves marijuana has killed anyone. Tell me how this makes sense, you have one drug killing so many people and commercials promoting it and another drug that has no records of any killings and itâ??s banned and made out to be so horrible. Another reason for its ban is to ensure jobs for police officers. Itâ??s such a waste of money to keep it illegal. Instead, they could use it for so much more, especially with health and the economy. We could be using the money wasted on so many other important things, such as, getting our homeless off the streets or rebuilding the economy. Medical marijuana could be huge revenue to the medical field and has a high chance of boosting the economy and if grown here, could help out our local farmers.
The negative side of legalizing marijuana for medical purposes is the fact that in other states people have faked pains to get prescriptions for it. It makes it easier for people to get the drug and use it for other purposes other than medical. Now this can easily be regulated if marijuana is treated like other pain medications that need prescriptions. Even though this can be true, itâ??s much better than handing over a prescription for vicodin or oxycontin for the simple fact that there is not proof of marijuana being addictive. There are people that are literally addictive to such pain medications as Tylenol. Why not have a pain medication that will sooth your pains with little to no addictive affect? It makes sense to me. I believe this can be a huge boost and right now we more than need it to help our debts and other factors in Pennsylvania, as well as, the rest of the United States.

With some minor editing and a little more research, you did pretty good. The Marijuana Tax act had so few tax stamps they weren't really available. Check that out a little better. :thumbsup:

i think PA right now has some crazy stuff going on; a legislator just got caught smoking, but is trying to bet out of the criminal charges.


PA Legislator busted for smoking Marijuana

Add this to your paper. :jointsmile:

The Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010

Preamble

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a sovereign state has the duty to carry out the will of the people of this Commonwealth and regulate the health, medical practices and well-being of those people in a manner that respects their personal decisions concerning the relief of suffering through the medical use of marijuana. This bill will also provide for the argument of the â??affirmative defense of medical necessityâ?� on charges of marijuana possession.

We the people, of the Commonwealth of the sovereign state of Pennsylvania,
in the exercise of our civil rights accorded under Article One of the constitution of the state of Pennsylvania, in Section 1; Section 2; Section 8; Section 20; Section 25; and Section 26, do, hereby Proclaim by Petition, affirm and enact the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production And Decriminalization Act of 2010. The above named act shall take effect one day after the majority of the citizens and duly registered voters assign their signature to this Act.

The Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010

Section 1. Use of marijuana for medical purposes.

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as Section 1 of the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010.

(b)(1) The people of the Commonwealth of the State of Pennsylvania hereby find and declare that the purposes of Section 1 of the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010 are as follows:

(A) To ensure that seriously ill citizens of Pennsylvania have the right to obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use is deemed appropriate and has been recommended by a physician who has determined that the personâ??s health would benefit from the use of marijuana in the treatment of cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pains, spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, gout, migraine, Hepatitis C, or any other illness for which marijuana provides relief.

(B) To ensure that patients and their primary care-givers who obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a physician are not subject to criminal prosecution or sanction.

(C) To encourage the federal and state governments to implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.

(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede legislation prohibiting persons from engaging in conduct that endangers others, nor condone the diversion of marijuana for non-medical purposes.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law; no physician in this state shall be punished, or denied any right or privilege, for having recommended marijuana to a patient for medical purposes.

(b) Section 780-113 of Title 35, relating to the possession of marijuana, and Section 7508 (a)(1) of Title18, relating to the cultivation of marijuana, shall not apply to a patient, or to a patientâ??s primary caregiver, who possesses or cultivates marijuana for the personal medical purposes of the patient upon the written or oral recommendation or approval of a physician.

(c) For the purposes of this section, â??primary-caregiverâ?� means the individual designated by the person exempted under this section who has consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health, or safety of that person.

Medical Use of Marijuana

SECTION 1. Section 1 shall be assigned and added to Title 35 of the Health and Safety Code upon enactment, to read:

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010.

(b)(1) The people of the Commonwealth and State of Pennsylvania hereby affirm, find, and declare that the purposes of the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production, and Decriminalization Act of 2010 are as follows:

(A) To ensure that patients and their primary caregivers who obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use is deemed appropriate and has been recommend by a physician who has been determined that the personâ??s health would benefit from the use of marijuana in the treatment of cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pain, spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, gout, migraine, Hepatitis C, or any other illness for which marijuana provides relief.

(B) To ensure that patients and their primary caregivers who obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a physician are not subject to criminal prosecution or sanction.

(C) To encourage the federal and state governments to implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.


(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede legislation prohibiting persons from engaging in conduct that endangers others, nor condones the diversion of marijuana for non-medical purposes.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no physician in this state shall be punished, or denied any right or privilege, for having recommended marijuana to a patient for medical purposes.

(b) For the purposes of this section, â??primary-caregiverâ?� means the individual designated by the person exempted under this section who has consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health, or safety of that person.


The Cultivation and Production of Hemp

Section 2. The Cultivation and Production of Hemp.

SECTION 2. Section 2 shall be assigned and added to Title 3 of the Agricultural Code upon enactment to read;

(a) This section shall be know and may be cited as the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production, and Decriminalization Act and Bill of 2010.

(b)(1) The people of the Commonwealth and State of Pennsylvania hereby affirm, find, and declare that the Purposes of the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act and Bill of 2010 are as follows.

(A) To ensure that the cultivation and production of all species of Cannabis sativa L. containing less than one and four-tenths (1.4%) concentration of THC, and contain cannabidiol (CBD) in concentrations equal to or greater than the THC be allowed by both private and commercial growers for health and industrial purposes.

(B) The commissioner of the state Department of Agriculture shall license all hemp farmers, producers, and handlers in the state, and designate authorized sources of hemp seed.

(C) Under this section farmers, producers and handlers may only plant designated hemp cultivars, and hemp fields must be inspected at least twice during the growth cycle with samples taken for THC analysis.

(D) Crops that exceed the THC limits must be destroyed at the farmerâ??s expense and crops must maintain at least a 0.4% buffer between hemp and marijuana and requiring criminal prosecution only when crops test greater than 1.4% THC.



Decriminalization

Section 3. Decriminalization of Personal Possession of Marijuana.

SECTION 3. This section shall be assigned and added to Title 35, Section 780-113 of the Health and Safety Code upon enactment, to read;

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act and Bill of 2010.

(b)(1) The people of the Commonwealth and State of Pennsylvania hereby affirm, find, and declare that the purposes of the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production, and Decriminalization Act and Bill of 2010 are a follows;

(A) The simple possession of marijuana in the amount of one ounce (30 grams) or less for personal use shall be considered a summary offense in which a citation shall be issued and shall carry no greater penalty than $50.00 for the first offense, and no more than $100.00 for any subsequent offense(s).

(B) No conviction for the possession of marijuana prior to the enactment of this act shall be considered in any court as a first offense nor subsequent offense(s) after enactment.


 

THE MEDICAL MARIJUANA, HEMP CULTIVATION AND PRODUCTION AND DISCRIMINATION ACT OF 2010

Signature Page

We the people, of the Commonwealth and sovereign state of Pennsylvania, by our signatures, hereby approve, affirm, find, and enact the Medical Marijuana, Hemp Cultivation and Production and Decriminalization Act of 2010. This act shall take effect one day after the majority of the citizens and duly registered voters have assigned their signature to this act.