The heart-wrenching stories came from both sides.
A Pittsburgh man testified of wishing he could have used pot to ease his dying mother's "excruciating pain." Parents of drug-addicted children said the last thing the state should do is join the 13 others that allow medical use of marijuana.
Thus did the Pennsylvania legislature dip its toe into the roiling waters of the legalization debate for the first time yesterday.
The setting was a standing-room-only hearing of a House committee considering a bill titled the Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana Act.
The sponsor, Rep. Mark Cohen (D., Phila.), said he hoped the testimony would "alter the outdated view of what should be another treatment option for many Pennsylvanians living in pain and discomfort."
His bill, modeled on laws in other states, would create a registry of patients who, with doctors' supervision and authorization, could buy limited amounts of the drug for medicinal purposes. State-licensed "compassion centers" would grow and sell the marijuana.
"The time has come," Cohen said, "for Pennsylvania to join 13 states that allow patients suffering from cancer, glaucoma, HIV, or other physically painful diseases to treat their symptoms and alleviate their suffering with this proven health-care option."
Cohen has six cosponsors, a precious few in the 203-member House. In the Senate, the majority Republican caucus has no plans to take up the issue even if the House bill passes, caucus spokesman Eric Arneson said.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment