Medical Marijuana Round Two

According to a Miami Herald article titled "Medical marijuana supporters unveil new proposal for 2016" the medical marijuana proponents are getting ready for round two of the ballot initiative to legalize medical marijuana. The new proposal specifies that parents would have to consent if their child is to receive medical marijuana. It adds extra language to clarify that only people with “debilitating medical conditions” can receive the drug. It makes sure to say that it can only be recommended by a licensed medical physician. And the Department of Health would be empowered to deny felons the ability to be so-called “caregivers” who deliver marijuana for a qualified patient. According to John Morgan, the wealthy Orlando trial lawyer who financially supports the medical marijuana ballot initiative, the Legislature’s intransigence and the amendment’s wording isn’t the only thing that has changed. The electorate will be different in a presidential election year because it’s younger and less conservative.Florida exit polls last November showed younger voters were more likely to support the amendment. As an organization I suggest that we reactivate the Marijuana Education Committee and proactively develop and distribute fact sheets debunking the medical marijuana myth. I also support the creation of a speakers bureau to address key audiences in different geographic areas throughout the state. Yes, I know that we are going to be outspent by Morgan and friends BUT we have the facts on our side. So lets go to work and start resuming regular conference calls. I look forward to your opinions and suggestions. Yours Bernd

Charlotte's Web: An Update

I hope that you are all doing well. Attached a link to an article titled " Use of medical marijuana could be months away" highlighting the difficulties of writing the rules governing the growth, production, sale and use of a cannabis extract called 'Charlotte's Web." A series of public workshops and hearings last summer resulted in controversial proposed state regulations, which were challenged in court, and on November 14th an administrative law judge struck down 13 of the rules prepared by state health officials. Miami based Costa Farms, the Florida Medical Cannabis Association and others had challenged the Health Department's plan to use a lottery to help license the five agricultural nurseries that would grow and distribute the medical marijuana strain designated to treat intractable seizures and OTHER chronic medical conditions. Judge David Watkins agreed that the lottery idea was "vague" and "arbitrary." Furthermore, he endorsed the claim by critics that it could spur unqualified growers to take a chance on getting selected only because they wanted to participate in the emerging lucrative pot business bonanza. During contentious public hearings Health Department officials argued that the lottery approach was needed to avoid lengthy legal fights over how nurseries were to be selected. The judge also threw out a Health Department provision that would have nurseries to pair with other companies to become eligible for a license. That decision precluded for the time being the efforts of "investors" and other gold diggers to elbow their way into this golden business. Meanwhile, the Health Department reported that at least eight doctors statewide have taken a doctor-training program and now are qualified to certify that patients may use the marijuana extract. Would like to know how many of those are addiction specialists. The office also has created a computer registry to track the program. Well, more tho be reported and I will keep you posted about the progress in that matter. Wish you all a Happy New Year. Yours Bernd

The Marijuana Cartel

Attached a link to an article titled "Marijuana ads signal new strategy in push to legalize" highlighting the growing political power of the marijuana lobby . Its tactics are based on a scorched earth policy: anyone who is considered critical of their goals has to get out of their way. In the case of Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is portrayed as the unlikely villain, a politician willing to send sick marijuana-using patients to prison. She found herself the target in television advertisements that ran in Florida last month, part of a new trend in the pot wars. What was her sin: she called for evidence based marijuana treatment as a condition for her support of medical marijuana. Of course this is being considered heresy because the pot lobby is interested in sales and big profits without any scrutiny by regulators or the FDA. Patient safety measures are not required because pot is safe. Got it?! So lets buckle up because we all will be the target of the new marijuana cartel. Yours Bernd

Overdose Death Decline

Attached a link to an article titled " Prescription Overdose Deaths in Florida Plunge After Tougher Measures, Report Says" reporting that the death rate from prescription drug overdoses in Florida fell by 23 percent from 2010 to 2012, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report states that during 2003–2009, the number of deaths caused by drug overdose in Florida increased 61.0%, from 1,804 to 2,905, with especially large increases in deaths caused by the opioid pain reliever oxycodone and the benzodiazepine alprazolam. In response, Florida implemented various laws and enforcement actions as part of a comprehensive effort to reverse the trend. This report describes changes in overdose deaths for prescription and illicit drugs and changes in the prescribing of drugs frequently associated with these deaths in Florida after these policy changes. During 2010–2012, the number of drug overdose deaths decreased 16.7%, from 3,201 to 2,666, and the deaths per 100,000 persons decreased 17.7%, from 17.0 to 14.0. Death rates for prescription drugs overall decreased 23.2%, from 14.5 to 11.1 per 100,000 persons. The decline in the overdose deaths from oxycodone (52.1%) exceeded the decline for other opioid pain relievers, and the decline in deaths for alprazolam (35.6%) exceeded the decline for other benzodiazepines. Similar declines occurred in prescribing rates for these drugs during this period. The report also emphasizes that " the temporal association between the legislative and enforcement actions and the substantial declines in prescribing and overdose deaths, especially for drugs favored by pain clinics, suggests that the initiatives in Florida reduced prescription drug overdose fatalities." This should serve as evidence that a well designed and executed public policy can improve public health and safe lives. Therefore, we must push for increased funding for such measures including the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) which is a valuable and essential tool in protecting patients from accidental overdose. Happy 4th of July.

Amendment 2 and the Democratic Party

The Amendment 2 debate is heating up and even within the ranks of the Democratic Party dissent is surfacing. According to an article published in yesterdays Miami Herald U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz expressed her concerns that the proposed constitutional amendment “is written too broadly and stops short of ensuring strong regulatory oversight from state officials.”“Other states have shown that lax oversight and ease of access to prescriptions can lead to abuse, fraud, and accidents,” said her statement, first reported by the Tampa Bay Times. “Also, given Florida’s recent history in combating the epidemic of ‘pill mills’ and dubious distinction as having among the highest incidents of fraud, I do not believe we should make it easier for those seeking to abuse the drug to have easy access to it.” Wasserman Schultz, pointing out that she’s a “cancer survivor, mother and lawmaker,” said that she’s “acutely empathetic to the suffering of people with terminal illnesses and chronic pain. My view is that approval of the use of marijuana as a medical treatment should be handled responsibly and in a regulated manner that ensures its approval does not do more harm than good.” Her concerns expressed were immediately sharply criticized by a John Morgan, a trial lawyer and a major Democratic donor, who blasted the national party’s chair, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, as an “irritant” who is becoming “irrelevant” after she voiced concerns about a medical marijuana proposal he helped put on Florida’s ballot this November. I applaud Rep. Wasserman Schultz for her principled stance on this issue and to remind us that common sense should prevail. Yours Bernd

Wasserman Schulz and Amendment 2

The Amendment 2 debate is heating up and even within the ranks of the Democratic Party dissent is surfacing. According to an article published in yesterdays Miami Herald U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz expressed her concerns that the proposed constitutional amendment “is written too broadly and stops short of ensuring strong regulatory oversight from state officials.”“Other states have shown that lax oversight and ease of access to prescriptions can lead to abuse, fraud, and accidents,” said her statement, first reported by the Tampa Bay Times. “Also, given Florida’s recent history in combating the epidemic of ‘pill mills’ and dubious distinction as having among the highest incidents of fraud, I do not believe we should make it easier for those seeking to abuse the drug to have easy access to it.” Wasserman Schultz, pointing out that she’s a “cancer survivor, mother and lawmaker,” said that she’s “acutely empathetic to the suffering of people with terminal illnesses and chronic pain. My view is that approval of the use of marijuana as a medical treatment should be handled responsibly and in a regulated manner that ensures its approval does not do more harm than good.” Her concerns expressed were immediately sharply criticized by a John Morgan, a trial lawyer and a major Democratic donor, who blasted the national party’s chair, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, as an “irritant” who is becoming “irrelevant” after she voiced concerns about a medical marijuana proposal he helped put on Florida’s ballot this November. I applaud Rep. Wasserman Schultz for her principled stance on this issue and to remind us that common sense should prevail. Yours Bernd

Medical Marijuana Issue

I hope that you are doing well. Attached an article written by Bruce Grant who was the director of the Florida Office of Drug Control and now serves as the chairman of the Leon County drug prevention coalition. His excellent editorial was published in the Miami Herald on 05/22/2014 and I urge you to read the article in it entirety. He clearly and eloquently states that: " If you liked Big Tobacco, you are going to love Big Marijuana. Expect the same slick ads that neglect to mention dangers in order to get our kids hooked as a key long-term strategy for profiteers. Just look at Colorado to see Florida’s future with legalization. Pot shops will replace pill mills. Physicians will abuse their prescribing privileges for marijuana just as they did when over-prescribing deadly legal narcotics. The medical marijuana ballot initiative would turn Florida into Colorado. The bill that just passed the Legislature allows cannabis oil to those truly sick who need it, but we don’t need to allow further legalization. The world is dangerous enough for kids without sanctioning another intoxicating drug to trip them up. The real effect of medical marijuana in Florida will be to jeopardize the safety and drug-free future of our most precious resource — our youth. Current drug prevention efforts will be stymied leaving us with thousands of pot shops, more teenagers smoking pot and more deadly car wrecks. That won’t be on the ballot in November, but it should be on every voter’s mind." Yours Bernd