Maryland Legislature Considers Medical Marijuana Task Force
Wednesday, March 11th, 2009 at 5:37 pm | By: Radical Russ
On Tuesday, March 24, members of the Maryland House Judiciary will hear testimony in support of House Bill 1339, an act to create a legislative task force to “study and recommend whether purchasing marijuana with a recommendation from a health care provider should be (state) law.”
The hearing will take place at 1pm.
In 2003, Maryland’s legislature passed legislation that requires courts to consider a defendant’s use of medical marijuana to be a mitigating factor in marijuana-related state prosecution.
The proposed task force will evaluate whether these provisions are effective, fair, and equitably applied across all jurisdictions in the state. Members of the task force will also study the ways that individuals who need therapeutic cannabis can legally procure it.
Please take a moment today to contact your elected officials and urge them to support House Bill 1339. If your representative sits on the House Judiciary Committee then it is especially important that he or she hears from you.
For more information on House Bill 1339, please visit MD Americans for Safe Access.
Thank you for supporting NORML’s marijuana law reform efforts in Maryland.
Topics: Maryland, MD HB1339SUBJECT: Study Issues Relating to the Medical Use of Marijuana: Vote ‘Yes’ on HB 1339
In writing you in support of House Bill 1339, an act to establish a legislative task force to study issues pertaining to the medical use of marijuana under a doctor’s supervision.
In 2003, Maryland’s legislature passed legislation that requires courts to consider a defendant’s use of medical marijuana to be a mitigating factor in marijuana-related state prosecution. House Bill 1339 seeks to establish a task force to evaluate whether these provisions are effective, fair, and equitably applied across all jurisdictions in the state.
House Bill 1339 does not change existing Maryland law; does not legalize the use of marijuana; and does not promote the use of marijuana.
Some 80 state and national health care organizations, including the American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association and The New England Journal of Medicine, support immediate, legal patient access to medical cannabis. This is an issue deserving objective study. That is why I urge you to support HB 1339.
