DEL.ICIO.USHEALTH / MEDICINE
A N.J. bill allows use of prescription marijuana for those suffering debilitating illnesses
The Record (Hackensack N.J.)
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
HACKENSACK, N.J. — Patients suffering from cancer, AIDS and other chronic or debilitating illnesses could use marijuana medicinally under a bill passed by the state Senate on Monday.
New Jersey would become the 14th state to have a medical marijuana law, which would allow patients to keep six marijuana plants and 1 ounce for personal use.
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State Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-Union, said the legislation he sponsored was as “an avenue of last resort” for patients suffering from nausea, chronic pain, wasting syndrome, seizures and other ailments.
“This is not the legalization of marijuana for recreational use,” said Scutari, a lawyer and municipal prosecutor. “We’re not talking about thrill-seekers and drug addicts here.”
Under the proposed measure, patients would have to be diagnosed by their physicians as having a debilitating medical condition. The patient would then obtain a photo registry card issued by the state Department of Health and Senior Services so they could obtain marijuana from an alternative medicine center without fear of arrest or prosecution.
Supporters of the bill, including Sen. Bill Baroni, R-Mercer, offered passionate testimony about suffering patients, including a 37-year-old man, the father of three young children, plagued by multiple sclerosis who found relief from medical marijuana, not Oxycontin, sleeping aids or other prescription painkillers.
State Sen. Gerald Cardinale, R-Cresskill, was among several Republicans who opposed the bill, claiming it was written too broadly. Cardinale said he didn’t object to the concept, but said that “a very small percentage” of users in states that allow medical marijuana are patients the law is intended to aid.
Cardinale cited an analysis of medical marijuana patient records reviewed by the San Diego County, Calif., district attorney, which revealed that less than 3 percent of patients were suffering from AIDS, glaucoma or cancer. Additionally, more than half of those permitted to use medical marijuana were under age 30 and research indicates the substance is harmful.
“Moderate use of marijuana causes brain cells to die,” Cardinale said. “That’s why the federal government made marijuana forbidden.”
After the vote Monday, state Sen. Loretta Weinberg, a co-sponsor of the legislation, said she supported it because it could give relief to chronically ill patients who were not benefiting from pain-relief prescriptions.
Weinberg noted that this weekend was the 10th anniversary of her husband’s death following a long illness. Hospice nurses provided morphine, but her husband wasn’t able to remain conscious, said Weinberg, D-Teaneck.
“To get relief and still be able to communicate would have been much better,” she said.
Stephen Cuspilich, 46, of Burlington County, N.J., lobbied lawmakers in support of the measure before the vote Monday. Using a cane and carrying a plastic bottle with more than a dozen prescription pain medications to ease suffering from Crohn’s disease, he said marijuana had alleviated severe pain in his hips and back and stopped his vomiting.
“It’s a social issue, not a criminal issue,” said the father of three, a union pipefitter who can no longer work due to his disability.
Opponents of the measure, including John Tomicki, executive director of the League of the American Families, vowed to fight the proposal when it is considered in the Assembly. Each member would be polled by his organization to determine their vote prior to the election, he said. “They are going to be called and asked ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ ” he said.
David Evans, executive director of the Drug Free Schools Coalition, cited the lack of scientific evidence on marijuana use and noted that several law enforcement organizations and anti-drug groups — including the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence of New Jersey — oppose the bill.
“The majority of people who are getting it are using it for back pain, insomnia and other minor problems,” Evans said. “The standards for who gets it are very loose.”
However, the public typically supports legalizing marijuana for chronically ill patients, said Roseanne Scotti, director of Drug Policy Alliance New Jersey.
“It’s polled as high as 86 percent in favor,” Scotti said. “Everybody understands ‘This could be me, my loved one.’ It’s the option everybody would want.”
The bill passed 22-16, mostly along partisan lines. Five Republicans voted for it. Two Essex County senators abstained from voting. It was unclear Monday when the Assembly might consider the legislation.
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(c) 2009, North Jersey Media Group Inc.
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