Despite passionate pleas Tuesday for the state to allow restricted use of marijuana for pain and nausea relief, a key lawmaker stressed that the idea will go no further this legislative session.
“There is a long way to go, I must say,” said Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, of Senate File 293.
The bill calls for new, not-for-profit facilities called “compassion centers” to acquire, cultivate and deliver marijuana and related supplies to qualifying patients. They would include those diagnosed by a practitioner as having cancer, Lou Gehrig’s disease or certain chronic illnesses.
With Bolkcom on the subcommittee for the bill were Sens. Jack Hatch, D-Des Moines, and Merlin Bartz, R-Grafton.
Stephen Erickson of Saydel told the lawmakers: “I definitely feel for those people that need it – and I say need it, not want it – for their medical use. … But also understand there’s a vast majority of the public that question, ‘How are you going to regulate this?’ ”
Bartz pointed out that he voted for a medical marijuana bill in 1993. It passed the Iowa Senate 50-0 but died in the House. But he could not support this bill as written, he said.
“A ‘practitioner’ can be a veterinarian,” Bartz said. “You could take Fido to the vet and say, ‘By the way Doc, I need some medical marijuana.’ ”
Bolkcom agreed that the bill needed tighter controls and a better definition of what compassion centers would be, but he said he wanted Iowans to eventually be able to use marijuana for medical needs without going to jail.
via Odds long for medical marijuana, Bolkcom says | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register.
Iowa Doctors can keep you doped up on whatever pain pill they want to give you regardless of the side effects. I am a paralyzed and suffer from pain in back and legs as well as spacisity from this injury. I am on like 5 different pills which counteract each other and all of them are class drugs, which without a prescription are ILLEGAL. Iowa is so far behind times in everything, but yet are said to be most intellectual, well use your intellegence to figure out what other states have deemed medicinal values of marijuana and pass the bills required, after all you legalize alcohol and tobbacco which we both know kills. HIPOCRITES in this state and the legislation backs all of it, open your eyes and realize there is people whom could benefit from what god put on this earth, not something concocted by man.
Mark Krugle
“A ‘practitioner’ can be a veterinarian,” Bartz said. “You could take Fido to the vet and say, ‘By the way Doc, I need some medical marijuana.’ ”
as opposed to the countless number of drug dealers state and nation wide? marijuana is as easy to get as a soda pop from the kwik mart.
‘How are you going to regulate this?’ ”
How are you regulating this NOW!
that’s me 24_7_365……..