Latest

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
MARCH 18, 2009

NH House Committee Passes Medical Marijuana Bill 13-7

Bill Would Make New Hampshire 14th State to Protect Seriously Ill Medical Marijuana Patients from Arrest

CONTACT: Matt Simon, NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy, (603) 391-7450

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE — The New Hampshire House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee voted 13-7 to recommend passage of a bill today that would allow seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana if their doctor recommends it. The vote by the full committee came after a three-member subcommittee voted 2-1 in favor of the bill.

    Today's vote means the bill, HB 648, will now go to the House floor for a full vote by the chamber with the committee's "ought to pass" recommendation. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Evalyn Merrick (D-Lancaster).

    The committee's strong statement of support provided medical marijuana patients with a boost of confidence. Clayton Holton, a muscular dystrophy patient from Somersworth, said the vote made him feel hopeful that he'd be able to live the rest of his life in New Hampshire. "I'm happy that my family may not have to move to a state that allows medical marijuana," he said.

    Thirteen states already have medical marijuana laws which effectively protect qualifying patients from arrest and help them safely access marijuana. Michigan became the most recent last year when 63 percent of voters passed its medical marijuana law by ballot initiative. Of the 11 states that have collected such data, not one has seen youth marijuana use rates increase after establishing a medical marijuana law. In fact, each of those states, including California, has actually seen youth marijuana rates decline, in some cases dramatically.

    In 2007, a bill similar to the one currently under consideration was defeated by only nine votes – an incredibly slim margin considering it had been negatively recommended by the committee that today voted to approve HB 648. However, a 2008 Mason-Dixon poll showed that 71 percent of New Hampshire voters support such a law, and medical marijuana advocates say legislators have learned a lot in two years about both medical marijuana and medical marijuana policy.

    "The committee studied the bill very diligently, and now it has placed its stamp of approval on a well-written, responsible bill," said Matt Simon, executive director of NH Common Sense Marijuana Policy, which supports the bill. "It was a good day for democracy." 

###

Dear ASA Supporter,

ASA was born in the midst of the federal government’s attacks on medical cannabis dispensing collectives in 2002. On January 22nd of this year we were all shocked and disappointed to see the DEA raid another dispensary during the first days of the new administration. Thousands of us voiced our outrage by calling the White House. Less than two weeks later, the White House responded by issuing a strong statement to the Washington Times, clearly indicating that the raids would soon end. It was a day so many of us will never forget.

Just a few weeks after the White House made its initial statement, Attorney General Eric Holder followed up to assure the public that policy would be changing. "What the president said during the campaign, you'll be surprised to know, will be consistent with what we'll be doing in law enforcement," Holder said. "What he said during the campaign is now American policy."

And so far, President Obama and Attorney General Holder have held true to their words. The DEA has not raided a medical cannabis provider since February 4th.

But that does not mean that our fight is over. There are still dozens of defendants awaiting federal trial on medical cannabis charges, several others who are already serving time and hundreds of thousands of Americans that live without safe access to their medication. There is obviously a lot of work left to do to protect safe access in this country and we need your help to do it! Please make a commitment now to the next phase of our fight by donating now.

I am excited to present a limited offer that will help you remember the day the White House came to its senses. The first 40 people to donate $1,000 will receive one of the last copies of the issue of the Washington Times featuring the White House statement in a front page story and a copy of the Los Angeles Times editorial supporting Attorney General Holder’s statement.

Act now!

Sincerely,

Friend,

President Obama recently announced that his administration would no longer allow ideology to trump science in policy-making decision. Yet, the very same week, the Obama administration publicly supported worn out Drug War ideology over harm reduction practices that have been proven to save and improve the lives of drug users.

I was back in Vienna, Austria last week to witness the United Nations' final deliberation over a new political declaration and action plan that will guide global drug policy for the next ten years.

Unfortunately, despite recommendations made by 300 Non-Governmental Organizations form around the world, including SSDP, the declaration included no mention of harm reduction.

(Harm reduction is like contraceptives, but for drugs. It's a scientifically proven set of policies and practices that keep drug users alive and healthy, without relying on abstinence-only messaging.)

After final approval of the declaration, 26 nations including Great Britain, Germany, and Australia, courageously spoke up to register their support for harm reduction in the official UN record, setting off a firestorm of debate on the floor of the United Nations.

While most countries chose to remain silent on the issue, a handful chose to speak up and denounce support for harm reduction.  These included Russia, Cuba, Pakistan… and the United States!

We must send a message to President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton that the American people will no longer stand idly by as they allow 20th century Drug War ideology to trump science and evidence!

Please visit this action page to send a message to President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton, read the final approved U.N. declaration, and watch video of SSDP participating in a protest and press conference outside the United Nations.

Thank you for your support of SSDP's efforts to bring science and reason to national and global drug policies.

Sincerely,

Kris Krane
Executive Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy

P.S. Like the work SSDP is doing to influence President Obama and the United Nations to change drug policy? If so, please let us know by making a donation today. http://www.ssdp.org/donate

Dear Friends:

Ten years ago yesterday, the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine (IOM) released its landmark report that forever changed the public debate on medical marijuana.

In November 1996, California became the first state to pass a medical marijuana ballot initiative. The following month, the Clinton administration struck back, threatening doctors if they recommended medical marijuana to patients. But the American Medical Association and the American public responded with outrage and condemnation, throwing the Clinton administration off-balance. The next month, in January 1997, the White House drug czar's office attempted to deflect attention by awarding $1 million in taxpayer money to the Institute of Medicine to conduct a two-year study of medical marijuana.

In 1997 and 1998, MPP brought dozens of patients to a series of IOM hearings to testify about their fear of being arrested. Indeed, many of the patients had already been arrested and/or incarcerated for using medical marijuana.

Then, on March 17, 1999, the Institute of Medicine finally released a report that was not at all what the drug czar's office had hoped for. The report contradicted the claims of the drug czar and other federals officials on a number of fronts:

1. It showed there is scientific evidence indicating that marijuana has medical uses.

2. It recommended that people with AIDS, cancer, and chronic pain who have an urgent need for marijuana be provided with immediate legal protection while further research is done on marijuana's medical uses.

3. It debunked the "gateway theory," saying that there is no evidence that using marijuana will "lead" someone to use cocaine and other drugs.

4. It said there is no evidence that allowing sick people to use medical marijuana will cause an increase in the recreational use of marijuana.

That report has been used as the intellectual foundation of most medical marijuana efforts in the decade since.

MPP co-founder Chuck Thomas with IOM investigators in 1998

The release of that report was the first time that MPP received a barrage of national media coverage, all over the course of just two weeks. But that media coverage pales in comparison to the coverage that MPP and the broader marijuana policy reform movement has been receiving over the last four months.

This is now a lesson in "be careful what you wish for." As the marijuana issue continues to explode across the political landscape in nearly all 50 states, MPP and our allies are getting stretched more and more thin ... as we attempt to capitalize on the opportunities that are presenting themselves in the news, in state legislatures, in Congress, and at the ballot box.

Anything you can give to help fund these exploding efforts would be greatly apprecated.

Thank you,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.