HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014 05-07 Senate passes sweeping medical marijuana plan; House bill tighter STAR TRIBUNE *Star Tribune
Senate passes sweeping
medical marijuana plan; House _
bill tighter
Article by: Patrick Condon
Star Tribune fy A;illof
May 7,2014-6:37 AM
Ignoring opposition from the governor and law
Advocates for Medical marijuana held photos
enforcement,the Minnesota Senate on Tuesday of relatives,loved ones and members of
voted to legalize medical marijuana and make it families who couldn't attend the hearing as the
bill was debated on the Senate floor,L to R
widely available in statewide dispensaries for a are Kendra Miller and Angela Garin.
broad range of ailments. Glen Stubbe,Star Tribune
"For God's sake, if people are suffering and we
have the ability to provide a way to alleviate the
pain, let's hear their concern, let's hear their -
prayer,"said Sen.Charles Wiger,DFL-
Maplewood,before the measure passed 48-18.
During the hourslong debate, medical marijuana
supporters looked on from the Senate gallery, Advocates for Medical marijuana hugged after
the new bill passed.
many holding aloft pictures of children they'd like
to receive the drug to reduce seizures brought on Glen Stubbe•gstubbe @startribune.com,
by epilepsy.
What's Next
"They have to pass something this session
The House may debate and vote on its
because the voters will remember if they don't," more restrictive bill on Friday.
said Jessica Hauser,a Woodbury parent who has
sought access to marijuana to help treat her son's
dozens of daily seizures.
The Senate bill is now on a collision course with a much more scaled-back and tightly
regulated legalization bill in the House,where members are trying to craft a bill that Gov. Mark
Dayton would be willing to sign.
The House version initially called for restricting participation to clinical trials,but the bill's
sponsors have since reframed the use as"observational research."That eliminates a
requirement that all medical marijuana would have to be used in the direct company of a
doctor,which critics said could put doctors at risk of federal prosecution.
The Ways and Means Committee approved the House bill early Tuesday and Speaker Paul
Thissen said the full House could vote on it as early as Friday.
Thissen said he believes the more modest House bill would win wider support among
lawmakers from both parties.
Critics warned Tuesday that legalizing marijuana,even for medicinal purposes,would set
Minnesota on a dangerous path.
"I think we're taking baby steps toward legalizing recreational marijuana,"said Sen. Bill
Ingebrigtsen, R-Alexandria, a former county sheriff. He noted that the two states that have
fully legalized marijuana—Colorado and Washington—started by authorizing medical
marijuana.Currently,21 U.S.states allow some form of marijuana use by patients.
"That's where my huge concern comes in,"Ingebrigtsen said.The Republican cited opposition
to the Senate bill from Dayton's commissioners of the departments of Health, Human
Services and Public Safety.
The Senate proposal would allow up to 55 medical marijuana dispensaries around the state,
dubbing them"alternative treatment cente s.;Patients would need a doctor's permission and
have to pay a$140 yearly fee to get a medical marijuana card.That would give them access
to up to 2.5 ounces of the drug at a time.Each center would pay a$15,000 yearly operating
fee to the state.
Qualifying conditions in the Senate proposal are cancer,HIV/AIDS,glaucoma,Tourettes
syndrome,ALS,seizures brought on by epilepsy,muscle spasms caused by multiple
sclerosis,Crohn's disease,post-traumatic stress disorder(PTSD),and a handful of conditions
that cause chronic pain.Patients would not be allowed to smoke the drug,but could use a
vaporizer or ingest it in pill or oil form.
The House proposal includes some features of the Senate bill but is far mom restrictive.The
yearly fee for patients would be higher,$200,and the list of qualifying conditions is smaller—
both PTSD and chronic pain are excluded.Officials estimate that slightly more than 5,000
Minnesotans would sign up to participate.
Rather than a system of dispensaries,the House plan calls for marijuana to be grown and
distributed at a single site under control of the Department of Health.That concerns some
medical marijuana supporters in the House.
"My concern is outstate Minnesota,"said Rep.Denny McNamara,R-Hastings.But Health
Commissioner Ed Ehlinger,an opponent of the Senate bill,opposed a move by McNamara to
expand the number of distribution sites from one to six.
Ehlinger said that having more than one manufacturer could result in quality control problems.
The product could be different depending where it is grown,"he said.
Wth major differences between the House and Senate proposals,a final bill would have to be
worked out in a conference committee.
Medical marijuana has scrambled the usual partisan alliances at the Capitol,with Democrats
and Republicans on both sides of the debate.
"Doctors prescribe highly toxic,highly addictive substances every day,"said Sen.Branden
Petersen,R-Andover."Nobody has ever died of a marijuana overdose."
Abby Simons and Rachel E.Stassen-Berger contributed to this story.
Patrick Condon•651-925-5049