movie

The medical marijuana industry in Colorado has gone to pot. There, the obvious pun needed to be said and gotten out of the way, but it’s not too far off the mark.

The marijuana dispensary industry, put into place by citizen initiative, is rapidly becoming both a spectacular failure and humorless practical joke on many who voted for it.

At a minimum, it certainly has not become what was envisioned by the crucial swing voters who, while not supporting the legalization of marijuana, felt that the truly ill needed to have the option of obtaining a remedy that serious medical professionals felt could be helpful.

Colorado approved the use of medical marijuana in 2000, requiring only the issuance of a state ID card certifying the bearer as a medical marijuana enrollee. It was not until Oct. 19, 2009, when the federal government announced it would not federally prosecute individuals for possessing or dispensing marijuana so long as the action conformed to state law, that the number of patients and dispensaries exploded.

While there is no lack of clientele wishing to become “patients,” there is a telling dearth of medical professionals willing to scribble cannabis on their prescription pads.

The Denver Post reported that, as of August, three quarters of recommendations for medical-purpose marijuana came from only 15 doctors and half of those physicians were operating on restricted licenses, barring them from writing many other prescriptions.

Meanwhile, the number of patients benefiting from this largesse has grown to approximately 30,000 across the state.

That number is not surprising, considering the seeming lack of an agreed upon therapeutic model to determine the drug’s necessity or if other less untested remedies might be as beneficial.

The Daily Sentinel discovered that the process for receiving a medical marijuana card is appropriately mellow and can be as simple as a teleconference with the recommending physician. It would be interesting to see what happened to physicians who wrote a few thousand Vicodin prescriptions based on a chat with first-time patients over a television monitor.

Even Gov. Bill Ritter has taken some time out from throttling the state economy to express concern and has reportedly suggested that prescribing physicians should be required to engage in actual physical examinations of their patients, provide follow-up consultation and possess a valid unrestricted medical license.

My strong suspicion is that many voters who pushed the medical marijuana initiative over the top assumed such rules would be standard and not an idea floated long after the barely regulated dispensary business began to pop up in communities like tie-dyed shirts at a Grateful Dead retrospective.

Cities and counties that are struggling to come up with some sort of regulations to control the number, placement and operating procedures for these hemp hostels are also clearly two steps behind the problem.

Additionally, they face the hurdle of a legal challenge to their authority to interfere with the ambiguous rights given to marijuana dispensaries under the 2000 initiative.

The dispensing of this sought-after medication is hardly accomplished in the traditional manner of a brown bottle with a childproof cap. Many dispensaries are branching out from simple distribution of smokable product to exotic food items.

The Denver Post reported that a shop called the Ganja Gourmet is servings such items as pizza and lasagna under such tempting names as “LaGanga” and “Panama Red Pizza,” as well as an item called “ganganade.” But don’t worry; you’ll keep your buzz through dessert, since they also sell cheesecake, muffins and brownies with the same blend of special herbs.

All this would be more acceptable if it had been a reasonable expectation of voters this would happen when the initiative was passed, but I’m fairly certain that those who desired the present situation were in the clear minority.

Let’s all hope the Legislature takes up reasonable and understandable regulation of this topic during the 2010 session. Maybe it can prevent the surrounding states from getting a contact high by bordering Colorado.

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Grieves

They killed your prophet then made you look like fools, how will you rebound...?

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José

if they took those 30,000 "patients" licenses away, there would be HELL TO PAY.

this article is clearly motivated by the political aspects of the federal politicians.

this article is not inspired by the average citizen. the average citizen in denver couldn't careless what is going on behind "the green door."

the government has made over $2,000,000 on just the registration fee for those 30,000 "patients." that's not even including what they are getting in taxes from all the dispensaries.

they are just starting to figure out that people are GROWING THERE OWN!! So there's not as much money involved as they first assumed.

They can't stop us all though...

TIMES ARE A CHANGING!

msicidron

why post that bullshit it's not even worth reading.

Unless you care about the petty politics.... this really has nothing to do with the Ganja industry.

what a fuckin joke.... carry on with cannabis as usual

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movie

I would be a joke if there was not so much at stake.


msicidron what would have us to here in Colorado that fits in your world of "THE Ganja Industry?

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José

lol is that english?

SageTree

Movie...do you know who Ken Gorman is?

No googling now....If you are living in Denver you'd be hard pressed to not know this man.

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Roach

harsh but none the less true.

Ken had really big shoes, and to date the Denver movement hasn't been able to fill them.( YaHooka probably never will )

You need a leader.

That person (like Ken) would have seen this political bottleneck and found a work around, or gathered backing to have the legislation more compassionately changed.

Maybe it's you ?

What size shoe do you wear ?

José

movie

lol....no it is not

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José

I've thought about this before strangely..

Hmm..