SUBJECT: OHIO PATIENT NETWORK SUPPORTS MEDICAL MARIJUANA WEEK, DENOUNCES STEPPED UP FEDERAL PROSECUTIONS

(Columbus, OH) This week, February 15-22, 2003, has been designated as "National Medical Marijuana Week" to protest increased federal efforts to further victimize patients and caregivers for the medical use of marijuana.

The Ohio Patient Network deplores the following developments in particular:

1. The trial of Ed Rosenthal, the noted writer and author, sometimes referred to as the "Guru of Ganja," was convicted in January 2003 in federal court on several charges related to his legitimate involvement in a plan by the City of Oakland to grow and distribute a legal source of cannabis to patients authorized by California's Proposition 215 to possess and use marijuana for medical purposes.  OPN finds several aspects surrounding this trial to be quite disturbing:

• The federal prosecutor in the case appeared to testify as an un-sworn witness during grand jury proceedings and did not subsequently recuse himself as normally would be required.

• The jury was not allowed to hear any evidence about medical marijuana or Proposition 215 that legalized its use in California.

• The defense was not permitted to inform the jury that Rosenthal had been deputized by the City of Oakland to provide medical marijuana and was consequently acting as an agent on behalf of the city.

• Rosenthal's potential sentence of 85 years or more in federal prison is extraordinarily excessive when compared to other sentences for other crimes including murder, which carries an average sentence of only 15 years.

OPN applauds the jurors in the Rosenthal case who, after learning the hidden facts shortly after leaving the courthouse, called for a nullification of their verdict and demanded a retrial.

2. Trials pending for other individuals who allegedly provided marijuana to California compassion clubs. Several similar trials loom for other medical marijuana providers in California including Lynn and Judy Osborn. The Osborns are members of the largest patient-run medical cannabis cooperative in California, the Los Angeles Cannabis Resource Cooperative (LACRC). LACRC had over 960 active members when the Drug Enforcement Administration raided its resource center headquarters in October 2001. Ten months after the federal assault Lynn and Judy were arrested and became the first of the LACRC patients to be charged under federal law, for activities which were protected under California's Prop. 215. As a consequence, they face over 40 years in federal prison if convicted. OPN hopes that the deplorable tactics used by federal prosecutors in the Rosenthal trial will not recur with the Osborns.

3.  An "Open Letter to America's Prosecutors" from the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONCDP). On November 1, 2002, Scott Burns, Deputy Director for State and Local Affairs at the ONDCP, published an open letter to America's prosecutors asking for stepped up prosecution of marijuana users, sellers, and growers.

As justification for these prosecutions, the ONDCP cited a series of "truths" about marijuana, which, in reality, contained little truth and few facts. While marijuana is not harmless, a report by the National Institutes of Medicine, entitled "Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base" and commissioned by the ONDCP in 1999, refuted most of the claims made in the ONDCP letter, by finding that:

• Marijuana is not addictive according to the medically proscribed definition of addiction

• It is not a gateway drug leading to abuse of other illegal drugs

• It does have legitimate medicinal value

OPN hopes that prosecutors will see the injustice in arresting, prosecuting, and imprisoning America's patients simply for using an effective medication to control and alleviate their symptoms and that, as guardians of the law, they do not want to see the legal system perverted as in the Rosenthal case to achieve a political goal.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can by found http://www.ohiopatient.net.

SUBJECT: PATIENT MARKS 20th ANNIVERSARY OF LEGAL MARIJUANA

(Columbus, OH) The Ohio Patient Network through its "One Patient at a Time" campaign wants to bring profiles of individuals who utilize marijuana as medicine into the public debate. One such individual, Irv Rosenfeld of Lauderhill, Florida, has been smoking 10-12 cannabis cigarettes per day for over 30 years. For the past 20 of these years, his supply has come legally from the United States government.

November 20, 2002, will mark the 20th anniversary that Rosenfeld has received his cannabis as a part of the now defunct Compassionate Investigational New Drug (IND) program. Grandfathered into the program after it was closed by the first President Bush, Rosenfeld has been receiving marijuana legally longer than any other individual in the U.S. Six other patients also remain in the program.

On Wednesday, November 20, 2002, at 10:00 am EST, Rosenfeld will hold a press conference at the Coastal Towers, 2400 Commercial Blvd., Suite 708, Ft. Lauderdale, FL. At it, he will discuss how the governmental program began and where it is today. He will also outline the obstacles faced by those who use medicinal cannabis illegally as well as the problems he encounters using it legally. This discussion will include his recent lawsuit against Delta Airlines for refusing to allow him to carry his legal supply with him on the airline. As a stockbroker, he will additionally review the economics behind why medicinal cannabis is not available for everyone.

Cultivated at the University of Mississippi, Rosenfeldâs regularly-supplied marijuana is rolled and packaged at the Research Triangle Institute in North Carolina under the supervision of the National Institute of Drug Abuse. A brief history of the Compassionate IND program can be found in OPNâs "The People Have Spoken: Medical Marijuana Polling 1996-2002" under the section, "A Brief History of Medical Marijuana (Cannabis)." http://www.ohiopatient.net/Poll_Analysis.htm.

Rosenfeld suffers from a rare bone disorder called Multiple Congenital Cartilaginous Exostoses. Characteristic of this condition are tumors, mostly benign but occasionally malignant, that form on the end of long bones such as the leg or arm. These tumors can cause pain, swelling, and other complications.

Mary Jane Borden, co-founder of the Ohio Patient Network, also has this rare condition. "It is so rare," she says, "that in occurs in only about 2,500 to 5,000 people nationwide. Herein lies the enormous disparity that every patient asks himself or herself: Why he and not me?" A profile of Borden will be released as a part of the "One Patient at a Time" campaign at a later date.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can be found at http://www.ohiopatient.net.

Rosenfeld can be reached by telephone at (954) 722-1919, by cell at (954) 536-9011, or by email at skipperirv@aol.com.

Note: This press release addressed an altercation between Hope Taft, wife of Ohio Governor Bob Taft, and OPN Director of Patient Advocacy Dee Dee Zoretic. 

SUBJECT: MEDICAL MARIJUANA PATIENT AND QUESTIONER PHYSICALLY RESTRAINED BY HOPE TAFT

(Columbus, OH) The Director of Patient Advocacy for Ohio Patient Network (OPN), Dierdre A. Zoretic, was physically restrained by Hope Taft, the wife of Ohio Governor Bob Taft, while attempting to ask the governor a question after the gubernatorial debate in Cleveland last Friday. Journalist, Dan Forbes, has written an account of this altercation entitled, "Medical Marijuana Activist Claims Ohio First Lady Manhandled Her at Debate," which can be found on DrugWar.com at http://www.drugwar.com/forbesfirstladytaft.shtm. Zoretic asked the question about medical marijuana at the first debate between Taft and Democratic challenger, Tim Hagan, on October 15, 2002.

Zoretic who suffers from RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy) attended the Friday, November 2, 2002, debate among incumbent Governor Taft, Hagan, and Natural Law Party candidate, John Eastman, held at the Cleveland City Club. After trying several times to pose her question from the microphones provided, Zoretic made her way toward the governor who was speaking to the media after the debate. She hoped to ask a follow-up question to the one she posed two weeks earlier. She also wanted to present him with a copy of the 1999 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report about medical marijuana.

As she approached the governor, she was intercepted by Mrs. Taft, a much taller and more imposing woman that she. Zoretic attempted to sidestep her, but Mrs. Taft grabbed and held tightly the lapel of Zoreticâs blazer preventing her from moving forward. Upon a signal from Mrs. Taft, the governor was ushered out of the building by his security detail. During the ten-minute conversation which followed, Zoretic explained the medicinal properties of marijuana to Mrs. Taft and handed her the IOM report. Zoretic said she ended the conversation by, "asking her why I deserved to suffer until I die." When Mrs. Taft tried to express sympathy for her, as her husband had in the October debate, Zoretic responded, "[Donât] feel sorry for me, but feel for my son. Think of the suffering that he has had to witness." In concluding the conversation, Zoretic said, "I asked her not to tell me she cared. I asked her to show it. I asked her to read the report, and support medical marijuana patients. I told her that her husband held our lives in his hand."

At the October 15 gubernatorial debate, Zoretic asked the candidates, "If you were elected governor, what would you do to help medical marijuana patients, like myself, from being treated like criminals, in our state?" Hagan answered her question saying, "To consider the fact that when people are suffering, we give them all kinds of drugs. If mira - medical marijuana alleviates the suffering of this young lady, or anyone else, dying. I say we gotta do that."

Governor Taft responded, "I oppose the legalization of addictive drugs. In the states that have medical marijuana laws, it's not the patients in need that are getting the drug. It's our kids, they are becoming addicted. And we know what addiction leads to; it leads to more drugs. It leads to a life of crime."

The Thursday, October 17, 2002, Columbus Dispatch ("Candidates Pick Up, Move On," by Alan Johnson and Joe Hallett) reported that Governor Taft had, "confirmed with his wife, Hope, whom the governor considers a substance-abuse expert, that marijuana is addictive and considered a ÎgatewayÎ drug that can lead to use of more dangerous narcotics." The IOM report that Zoretic wanted to give the governor proved those claims wrong.

OPN is deeply concerned that a citizen of Ohio with a legitimate question for its Governor has been physically restrained and diverted from asking it. However, we hold out hope that Mrs. Taft will have come away from this altercation with a better understanding of medical marijuana and the concerns of the patients who use it.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can be found at http://www.ohiopatient.net.

Note: This press release was issued in response to the debate on Tuesday, October 15, 2002, in Dayton, between Ohio Governor Bob Taft and his Democratic challenger, Tim Hagan.  

SUBJECT: MEDICAL MARIJUANA PATIENTS APPLAUD HAGAN, DENOUNCE TAFT

(Columbus, OH) The Ohio Patient Network (OPN) applauds Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Tim Hagan, for the compassionate stance toward medical marijuana that he articulated in the debate between Governor Bob Taft and he on Tuesday, October 15, 2002 in Dayton.

Hagan was responding to a question posed by OPNâs Director of Patient Advocacy, Deirdre Zoretic, of Lakewood. Zoretic, who has an incurable nerve condition, asked the candidates, "If you were elected governor, what would you do to help medical marijuana patients, like myself, from being treated like criminals, in our state?" Hagan answered her question saying, "To consider the fact that when people are suffering, we give them all kinds of drugs. If mira - medical marijuana alleviates the suffering of this young lady, or anyone else, dying. I say we gotta do that."

OPN President and Multiple Sclerosis patient, John Precup, noted, "Many patients were amused that Mr. Hagan twice inadvertently substituted Îmiracleâ for Îmedicalâ in his answer." According to Precup, patients for whom other medications have not worked because of adverse side affects have turned to marijuana and found it a "miracle." However, he added, marijuana may not be for everyone, so it is important for patients to involve their physicians in medical decisions with respect to all medications.

Governor Bob Taft drew ire from the group with his answer, "I oppose the legalization of addictive drugs. In the states that have medical marijuana laws, it's not the patients in need that are getting the drug. It's our kids, they are becoming addicted. And we know what addiction leads to; it leads to more drugs. It leads to a life of crime." Precup countered, "This statement is ridiculous. First, Mr. Taft has no data from which to make such an outrageous claim. Children are no more likely to become Îaddictedâ as a result of the administration of marijuana by legitimate patients, than they are from any other drug used in medicine. Secondly, this statement implies Mr. Taft does not believe that any Îaddictiveâ drugs should be legal in medical practice. Would he apply this same logic and forbid the use of, say, morphine in the treatment of cancer pain?" Marijuana, Precup concluded, should be treated no differently than the pharmacopoeia of drugs that can be used to treat serious injury or illness.

The Ohio Patient Network does not believe that any scientific evidence supports the line Taft draws from marijuana through "addictive drugs" to children. In 1999, the National Academy of Sciencesâ Institute of Medicine conducted one of the most extensive reviews of marijuana ever undertaken. Their report found that "few marijuana users become dependent on it, but those who do encounter problems similar to those associated with dependence on other drugs" and that "[marijuana] does not appear to be a gateway drug to the extent that it is the cause or even that it is the most significant predictor of serious drug abuse." (http://www.nap.edu/html/marimed/ch3.html) Obviously, Taft didnât review this important report before debating Hagan. Sadly, Zoretic and patients like her remain criminals in the eyes of both Taft and the State of Ohio.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can be found at http://www.ohiopatient.net.

SUBJECT: ONE PATIENT AT A TIME: THE RALLY FOR MEDICINAL CANNABIS

(Columbus, OH) The Ohio Patient Network (OPN) announces its "One Patient at a Time" campaign to highlight the pain and suffering endured by medicinal cannabis patients, not only from their disabilities and illnesses, but also at the hands of the state and federal governments. On Thursday, October 24, 2002, at 12:00 noon, OPN and candidates for public office who support medical marijuana will participate in a rally in front of the McKinley Statue on the grounds of the Ohio Statehouse.

"The recent DEA raid on the Wo/Mens Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) hospice in Santa Cruz and the sentencing of medical marijuana provider, Brian Epis, to ten years in federal prison have really struck a cord with patients in Ohio," said OPN President and multiple sclerosis patient, John Precup. "To make matters worse," Precup adds, "our analysis of public opinion data shows that the public overwhelming supports us."

The report to which Precup refers, "The People Have Spoken: Medical Marijuana Polling 1996-2002," was released by OPN in June 2002. It found that more than two thirds of the American public support the medical use of marijuana.

One patient featured in the report, Dan Asbury of Oregon, Ohio, composed an emotional letter to Ohio Senators Eric Fingerhut and Mitch Kaptur, Ohio Representative Chris Redfern, and Ohio Governor Bob Taft. The letter, which is attached, pleads with these officials to hear Asburyâs plight and heed public opinion. OPN hopes that the rally on October 24 will drive this point home shortly before the upcoming election.

Over the coming weeks as a part of this new "One Patient at a Time" campaign, OPN will introduce to the media and public other personal stories and letters composed by medicinal cannabis patients in Ohio.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can by found http://www.ohiopatient.net.

NOTE: Dan Asbury's poignant letter can be found along with words of other Ohio patients as a part of our One Patient at a Time campaign.

SUBJECT: CANNABIS PATIENTS DEMAND HALT TO DEA RAIDS

(Columbus, OH) The Ohio Patient Network (OPN) strongly opposes the arrest, harassment, and intimidation by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) of medical marijuana patients and caregiver organizations in the state of California, which operate legally under California law.

OPN asserts that the federal government has exceeded its authority under the Constitution and violated the state of California's right to self-government. Over the past several months, the DEA has launched military-style raids on California patient collectives, most recently on the Santa Cruz-based Wo/Mens Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM). This charitable organization serves as a hospice for the terminally ill.

Through these raids, the DEA has systematically either seized or destroyed the private property of hundreds of medical marijuana patients and patient cooperatives. It has terrorized the seriously ill, confiscated their necessary life-saving medicine, and obstructed the implementation of California's Proposition 215 passed by overwhelmingly voters in 1996.

The Drug Enforcement Agency claims to only concern itself with large-scale drug dealers and importers of certain precursor chemicals used in manufacturing dangerous drugs such as methamphetamine. However, under the Bush administration and headed by Asa Hutchinson, the DEA has directly attacked and terrorized small marijuana patient cooperatives and individual medical marijuana activists.

The United States was founded on the principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The Ohio Patient Network believes that happiness can only be achieved through proper relief from the pain and suffering caused by disease or injury and that patients should have the liberty to access the most effective form of treatment and life-giving medicine available. That medicine for thousands of Americans is marijuana.

We ask that those who share our concern please contact their respective members of Congress, as well as state representatives, and express outrage at the military style assault raids conducted by the Drug Enforcement Agency against our weakest and most vulnerable citizens.

The Ohio Patient Network is a non-profit coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Information about OPN can by found http://www.ohiopatient.net.

SUBJECT: POLITICIANS CATCHING UP WITH PUBLIC OPINION

(Columbus, OH) The upcoming Wednesday, July 24th press conference by Reps. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX) regarding H.R. 2592, the Statesâ Rights to Medical Marijuana Act, shows that legislators are listening to the public says Ohio Patient Network president, John Precup. "Our analysis shows that consistently two-thirds, if not more, of the American public support the medicinal use of marijuana. With several pro-cannabis initiatives and candidates on the ballot in the fall, medical marijuana will be a pivotal issue."

The study Precup refers to, The People Have Spoken: Medical Marijuana Polling 1996-2002, can be found on the Web site of the Ohio Patient Network. <http://www.ohiopatient.net>. It reviews sixty-six separate scientifically-conducted public opinion surveys, representing the opinions of over 50,000 people both nationally and in more than thirty states. Findings of this study, which include a simple model of possible vote distribution should the issue receive major party support, highlight the political implications of this emotional issue. The report, along with its sources and data tables, are available in presentation-quality PDF format on the site.

The Ohio Patient Network is a coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes. Precup, who uses cannabis to control the nausea that accompanies multiple sclerosis, will be attending the press conference. It is scheduled for 11:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, 2002, in Room HC-9 of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, DC.

SUBJECT: PUBLIC OPINION TOWARD MEDICAL MARIJUANA

(Columbus, OH) The Ohio Patient Network (OPN) proudly announces the release of its groundbreaking study, "The People Have Spoken: Medical Marijuana Polling 1996-2002." This report outlines the findings of sixty-six separate public opinion polls on the subject, reviews many of the questions asked in them, describes respondentsâ demographics and party affiliation, defines the political implications, and illustrates why the medical marijuana issue is so important in the public mind. It also matches polling data to election results in order to create an easy-to-understand model of possible election outcomes should this issue receive major political party support. In addition, this report includes a brief history of medicinal cannabis and highlights the impact of its prohibition both numerically and through personal accounts. A separate sheet listing the key findings with associated page numbers follows this release.

The narrative of The People Have Spoken can be viewed on the Ohio Patient Network Web site at http://www.ohiopatient.net. Presentation-quality PDF (Portable Document Format) files of the report and its data tables can also be downloaded.

The Ohio Patient Network is a coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis for various medicinal purposes.  Our mission is to disseminate information among patients, caregivers, medical professionals, and attorneys, as well as to educate legislators and the public.

Questions concerning the study may be directed to its author, Mary Jane Borden, at mjborden@ohiopatient.net.

Dear Media Outlet,

If there is any issue that sparks controversy, it is the medical use of marijuana (cannabis). Many patients and caregivers in Ohio see it as a relief for a variety of afflictions from arthritis to multiple sclerosis. Because medical cannabis is receiving more press coverage than ever before, we want to be sure that the viewpoint of patients and caregivers is told accurately and fairly. With that in mind, Iâd like to introduce to you the Ohio Patient Network (OPN). The Ohio Patient Network is a statewide coalition of patients, caregivers, medical professionals, concerned citizens, and organizations who support the compassionate use of cannabis (marijuana) for various medicinal purposes.

OPN has several missions. First, we want to educate the media, the public, and legislative officials about medical cannabis. Toward that end, we have established an extensive link list on our Web site at http://www.ohiopatient.net. We feel that it represents one of the most robust starting points for anyone who is researching this issue. We plan to update it regularly as more studies are published and more resources become available. A listing of a few of these links and a fact sheet about medical marijuana are included with this letter.

We also publish a monthly e-newsletter, OPNews, that will keep you up to date on the latest developments in the medical use of cannabis. To sign up for OPNews please send your request to editor@ohiopatient.net. All past issues of our newsletter can be viewed at our web site.

As our second mission, OPN is actively fighting to change the law in Ohio regarding medical marijuana. As we make calls on the legislature and once we have a bill introduced we will be sure to make your organization aware of our progress through regular press releases.

Finally, we seek to provide networking and support for patients in Ohio who have found medicinal benefit in cannabis. We know how isolated many significantly ill patients already feel. The illegal status of an agent that helps them only adds to their misery. We want every such patient to know that they are not alone. Toward that end, we will provide your organization with patients to interview who can tell you their own personal stories.

We hope that you will turn to OPN as your first source of contact about medical cannabis both when you need information and interviews. We invite you visit our Web site, http://www.ohiopatient.net. You can reach us in a number of ways: by e-mail at jprecup@ohiopatient.netor at our general phone number (614) 265-8683. You may also contact me personally by phone at (419) 524-3804.

Thank you for your interest in OPN.

John Precup

President

Note: We received an e-mail from former meningitis patient, Tom Martin, from Pennsylvania. He had been reading various media reports about the outbreak of meningitis in Alliance, Ohio. He wrote us to not only express his concern, but to also let us know how the medical use of marijuana helped to ease the pain and symptoms of meningitis that he had suffered years earlier. We felt that this was important information to share with the public, so we composed the following Letter to the Editor that was sent to approximately ten media outlets in Ohio including the Akron Beacon Journal, the Columbus Dispatch, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Toledo Blade, and the Alliance Review. 

Dear Editor,

We received the following e-mail message from former meningitis patient, Tom Martin, in Pennsylvania. He wrote:

"I want to bring to your attention a reminder I got a couple of days ago. In Alliance, Ohio, two people have died of meningitis and hundreds were lining up for vaccinations These deaths could have been wholly unnecessary, and the medical use of marijuana could have been the difference.

Meningitis is an infection of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal chord. Just like when glaucoma patients smoke, the swelling goes down. The same occurs with meningitis. The skull ensures that there is no place for the swelling of the brain to go. The pain is excruciating. The spider web of nerves that leave the brain and go to the eyes and ears are stressed. They often suffer lifetime damage. As a former meningitis patient, I have mild tinnius - a constant ringing in the ears and hypersensitivity to light - as a result of my attack.

For several days before I went into the hospital, I would light up at night, and the pain and the pressure on my eyes almost instantly went away, something a bottle of aspirin would not do.

I do not support the claim that medical marijuana cures meningitis. What it does (that morphine did not do) is instantly alleviate the pain and the potentially lethal symptoms that cause damage and thereby buy the patient time for antibiotics to work and the body to heal without the threat of death or long term disability."

We at the Ohio Patient Network believe that this is important information for the public to have. We understand that many of the patients currently suffering from meningitis in Ohio are adolescents. Please note that we do not support the use of marijuana or any other drugs by adolescents without a physicianâs approval. We also understand that anyone suffering from the symptoms of meningitis ö high fever, headache, stiff neck, confusion, nausea, vomiting, exhaustion, and possible rash ö should immediately seek medical care.

However, if this information could alleviate the suffering or prevent the death of even one person, then the public should know about it and physicians should learn to utilize it. Thank you.

Note: This letter was presented to selected members of the Ohio House of Representatives when OPN members visited their offices in March and April seeking sponsorship of the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act (OMMA).

Ohio House of Representatives

77 South High Street

Columbus, OH 43266

Dear Representative,

Since the convening of the 2001 Ohio legislature, the Ohio Patient Network, has drafted a bill to restore the protection and rights of medical marijuana patients in Ohio.

After extensive investigation and discussion with several legislators, the bill known as the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act (OMMA) was completed. A final version of it is ready for introduction to the Ohio legislature.

A great deal of care and attention to the concerns of our legislative supporters has permitted us to present a carefully designed bill to address the concerns of law enforcement, the medical community and the needs of your constituents.

Our bill will:

• Re-establish a medical marijuana defense for qualified patients
• Provide for a registry database of qualified patients.
• Require that the State Department of Health issue identification cards to qualified patients and caregivers.
• Establish an application and review process with the State Department of Health
• Will not interfere with the application or enforcement of other state or federal laws.
• Provide a means of treatment for otherwise untreatable pain, nausea, and muscle spasmâs, caused by either a patientâs condition or the treatment thereof.
• Protect the traditional patient-physician relationship

The Ohio Medical Marijuana Act is modeled after other highly successful medical marijuana bills introduced around the country as well as medical exemptions in numerous states that have existed since the 1970s, and we are certain that it will work well in Ohio.

The National Academy of Sciencesâ National Institute of Medicine proved the efficacy of medical marijuana in March 1999, and countless other reputable studies also support the findings.

OMMA is supported by a coalition of patients, medical professionals, attorneys, concerned citizens, and health organizations including the American Public Health Association.

The OMMA is both compassionate and reasonable in scope, and we believe that it will provide the necessary protection and relief to those for whom there is currently no known viable alternative.

The Ohio Patient Network would like you to sponsor or co-sponsor this act.

Through conversations with other legislators, we understand that this act is likely to pass in the House Health Committee. We would recommend that the bill be referred to the House Health Committee for consideration and recommendations.

If you have any questions or concerns, please donât hesitate to contact us.

Thank you very much for your consideration.

Date Issued: March 13, 2001

OPN TO KICK OF LEGISLATION DRIVE

(Columbus, Ohio) On Wednesday, March 28, 2001, the Ohio Patient Network (OPN) will kick off its drive to pass medical marijuana legislation through the Ohio legislature. Representatives from OPN will be gathering at the Ohio State House and meeting with members of both the Ohio Senate and House of Representatives. The group is seeking to change state law regarding medical cannabis, to permit seriously ill patients to utilize it as a treatment for certain debilitating or chronic conditions under the care of a licensed physician. The bill, known as the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act, will establish a registry with the Ohio Department of Health which will be required to review applications and issue identification cards to qualifying patients.

Currently, eight patients in the United State receive marijuana from the federal government under the now discontinued Investigative New Drug program or IND. In 1997, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) released a study by the National Institute of Health's Institute of Medicine (IOM) assessing the scientific base of marijuana as medicine. The federal study commissioned by the ONDCP, revealed that marijuana did indeed have medical properties that are not yet duplicated in modern medications and recommended further research into the field. The report also concluded that the "gateway" effect which purportedly leads to the use of harder drugs was, in the case of marijuana, unfounded. Further, the report indicated that people whose medical conditions were of such a nature that any ill effects of marijuana use would be outweighed by the benefits they could receive from it should not be denied the right to use it.

An estimated twenty-five percent of patients don't respond to traditional medications for the treatment of severe nausea, muscle spasms or chronic pain either caused by the condition itself (as with multiple sclerosis, for example) or by the treatment for it (such as chemotherapy).

In light of the IOM report and the fact that the federal government supplies a small number people with a prescription of marijuana every month, the Ohio Patient Network believes that Ohio should recognize the right of seriously ill people to use marijuana to alleviate symptoms that are otherwise untreatable. As multiple sclerosis patient and OPN president, John Precup, stated, "We don't believe that sick people in Ohio should be made to suffer in the interest of enforcing archaic laws which fail recognize what science has long known: marijuana is medicine."

The bill would permit licensed patients or their caregivers to possess and grow marijuana for medical use, and would not effect other laws pertaining to the non-medical use of marijuana. The group is asking concerned citizens to call or write their state representatives and urge them to support the bill.

The Ohio Patient Network is a newly formed non-profit patient advocacy group comprising patients, caregivers, physicians, nurses, and other concerned citizens. The group can be reached by mail at P.O. Box 26353, Columbus, Ohio, 43226. Its phone number is (614) 265-8683 and its World Wide Web address is www.ohiopatient.net.