Nearly 250 Illinois physicians
endorse medical marijuana
Illinois House of Representatives
expected to vote this week on legislation that would allow doctors
to recommend medical marijuana to patients with serious illnesses
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[April 17, 2013]
CHICAGO -- At a news conference
Tuesday, a group of doctors announced the support of nearly 250
Illinois physicians for allowing patients with serious illnesses to
obtain and use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it.
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"For many patients, the treatment can sometimes be worse than the disease," said
Dr. Margaret Millar of Moline, one of the endorsing physicians. "Having seen the
devastating, and all-too-often lethal toll that legally prescribed narcotics can
take, I support medical marijuana as a safer, milder treatment option that
carries no risk of fatal overdose." Specifically, the doctors signed on to the
following statement:
"Licensed medical practitioners
should not be punished for recommending the medical use of marijuana to
seriously ill people, and seriously ill people should not be subject to criminal
sanctions for using marijuana if their medical professionals have told them that
such use is likely to be beneficial."
The Illinois House of Representatives is expected to vote this week on
House
Bill 1, which would make Illinois the 19th state to allow patients with certain
conditions, such as cancer and multiple sclerosis, to use medical marijuana with
recommendations from their physicians. It would also establish a network of
state-regulated cultivation centers and dispensaries to provide marijuana to
qualified patients.
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"It should be up to physicians, not police and prosecutors, to
decide whether medical marijuana is the right treatment for their
patients," said Dan Riffle, deputy director of government relations
for the Marijuana Policy Project. "Seriously ill people who benefit
from medical marijuana should be able to obtain it legally and
safely. Our laws should promote the doctor-patient relationship, not
the dealer-patient relationship."
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The Marijuana Policy Project, the nation’s largest
marijuana-policy-reform organization, has been responsible for
changing most state-level marijuana laws since 2000. For more
information, visit
http://www.marijuanapolicy.org/.
[Text from
file received from the Marijuana
Policy Project] |