Less than 5% of people in states with “medical” marijuana programs have HIV, glaucoma, or cancer.
The bottom line is that the law was written by advocates, not doctors or DPH, so the proposals about allowing anyone to get marijuana for any reason still stands.
The regulations would allow for 300-600 joints to be possessed for “medical” use every 60 days.
No matter how you slice it, it is a bad law.
DPH made a good faith effort to work with a very bad law which is rife with potential abuse. And while DPH is trying to protect residents of the Commonwealth from molds, pesticides and other adulterants often found in “medical” grade marijuana, the fact is that out-of-state profiteers will still try to set up shop in Massachusetts under the guise of compassion.
These entities are not run by health groups, are not sanctioned by the Massachusetts Medical Society, and will have wide reign to run their operations.
The tricky thing for DPH officials is that the more they try and intervene, the more afoul they run of federal law. Federal law maintains that marijuana is illegal for any purposes, and US DOJ officials in various states have threatened states with legal action, property seizure, and civil and criminal investigations.
The bottom line is that DPH did the best they could, and should be commended for doing so, but that this law still tries to fit a square peg in a round hole.
Just because marijuana advocates are now throwing on white coats and feigning concern for the terminally ill does not mean this will be done right.
Doing medical marijuana right would ensure for carefully controlled clinical trials offering non-smoked versions of marijuana for people that have very serious illnesses. This law does not come close to doing that. That is why every major medical group, including the American Medical Association, opposes smoked marijuana as medicine delivered through state programs like this one.