Compassionate Use Act Research Paper

Also, marijuana can be seen as being addictive in nature. “Approximately 9% of individuals that use marijuana become addicted” (Marijuana Statistics). Marijuana contains many chemicals, such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which can cause many positive and negative effects to the human body and brain. A major attribute for medical marijuana is the economic advantages that are produced from the distribution of the drug. Also, the legalization of medical marijuana can portray positive and negative outcomes for law enforcement. Therefore, medical marijuana has many positive effects, such as treatment for diseases, and negative effects, such as immune system suppression. Throughout this research paper, medical marijuana will be thoroughly explained to exemplify the advantages and disadvantages of legalizing the

Cannabis, also known as Marijuana, has been used by humans throughout history for medical, recreational, as well as spiritual purposes. Its fiber, oil, and seed are also refined into products such as hemp oil, wax, rope, cloth, and paper (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2013, para. 1). With 56% voters overwhelming supported for medical cannabis, California became the first state in the United States to pass Prop 215 in 1996 ensuring the patients and their primary caregivers to “have the right to obtain and use marijuana for medical purpose” (California Department of Public Health, 2013, Text of Law section, para. 1).

· Medical Marijuana Law: Passed under the Compassionate Use act of 1996, Proposition 215 ensured that individuals in California could use marijuana for medical uses as approved by a physician. It also led to the rise of dispensaries, where the drug could be provided and monitored safely, as well as allowed home growing of marijuana under certain restrictions for individuals using it medically. It also allowed the patient’s, “primary caregiver” to obtain the marijuana for the individual. This caregiver has to provide “…for housing, health or safety” of the patient (Proposition 215).

The use of marijuana for medicinal purposes is a long-standing controversy. For centuries marijuana was prescribed to alleviate symptoms associated with a variety of illnesses. Anti-medical marijuana sentiments began with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act banned the use of marijuana completely, categorizing it as a drug with no medicinal value, high abuse rates, and detrimental health effects (http://www.farmacy.org/prop215/apha.html). Since 1996, numerous states including California, Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington have passed medical marijuana initiatives supporting the right to prescribe marijuana for seriously or terminally ill patients (http://www.marihemp.com/marimed.html). The American Public Health Association and the Institute of Medicine represent two organizations that have recently researched and endorsed advancements in the study of medical marijuana. Both groups support the use of marijuana for specific treatments, such as reducing nausea in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, stimulating the appetites of AIDS victims, and limiting spasticity in MS patients.

    Many people suffer unbearable pain and discomfort from their illnesses and seek any method that might bring relief. Many suffer from chemotherapy treatment, HIV infection related wasting, glaucoma, or other serious ailments that carry an unbearable amount of pain. They first try the drugs that their doctors have prescribed. These prescribed legal drugs seem to have some benefits, but often carry with them many side effects that may be more harmful than helpful. Many patients give the legal drugs a try and find that they are not effective in relieving them of their symptoms. As a result, many turn to marijuana for its medicinal use. Because it is an effective treatment,

            Many citizens in the United States suffer from lifelong diseases that cause them to lose the ability to live their day-to-day lives. The United States is now faced with the problem over whether or not drugs, often stigmatized by society, should be made legal. One of these lifesaving drugs is medical marijuana. This leaves us with the troubling question: “should medical marijuana be legalized in the United States?”. Supporters of the drug have argued that it should be legalized because it is superior to other painkillers and can be beneficial to people suffering from numerous illnesses. However, those who oppose its use, argue that not enough research has been done and it may be harmful. The

Many medically ill patients experience agonizing pain everyday that they can not easily control with regular pain medicine, so what’s the next best thing? There have been many recent cases where medical patients have used medical marijuana for therapeutic uses and found that it had slowed the progression of their disease or helped cure it. Medical marijuana has started to become more popular with medical communities and researchers. Medical marijuana can affect many things in a positive way such as financial situations and social aspects, while having benefits on medical illnesses. Medical marijuana that does not contain the THC drug should be legalized in the United States because it would provide therapeutic benefits without making the user feel high.

Chronic pain is a tremendous public health problem, and a costly one. As health care advances and the need for palliative care rises, patients and health care providers are constantly investigating alternative methods of pain treatment and management. Questioning and challenging traditional health policies and practices has created an interest in the use of cannabis as an alternative option to standard opioids, for the management of chronic pain. Cannabis, or marijuana, is a leafy green plant consisting of buds and leaves of the cannabis sativa forma indica plants. Marijuana has been used in holistic solutions for hundreds of years; it has also been especially prevalent among terminally ill cancer patients, who have been reported using it to alleviate symptoms like chronic pain, nausea and depression.

Cannabis has provided millions worldwide with relief from chronic pain caused by a myriad of pain-producing illnesses. Cannabis has significantly improved the quality of life of people with cancer, AIDS, arthritis, and the list goes on. The medical marijuana movement is not concerned with decriminalizing or legalizing cannabis for recreational use. It is concerned with helping people with serious illnesses and disabilities to get on with their lives. (Bearman, 2011)

Legalization of Marijuana has become a controversy in the United States. Medical marijuana has many benefits although recreational marijuana cannot yet be controlled. Many important medical improvements will be gained when marijuana is legal. There will be a time, within the near future, when it is legal federally. Today there are many states in the United States that have legalized marijuana for medical use. There are two states, as of November 2012, which legalized marijuana for recreational use. The federal government still states that marijuana, to be

The use of marijuana for medicinal treatment has recently been an argumentive issue in state politics. The intent of this paper is to inform the reader of the benefits of using marijuana to assist patients with incurable diseases and to prove that states should have the right to legally control the use of it.

The fact that marijuana has proven to be useful in the treatment of multiple diseases that hinder Americans today seems to have been overlooked by the legal system in the United States, until now. At this point it's now possible to acquire prescribed amounts of Medical Marijuana from KW Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, among other sources now provided in certain states here in the United States. Most of the Medical Marijuana Dispensaries require that you first get a recommendation from your primary physician before you can get a formal prescription for Medical Marijuana filled, but it has now been proven that Marijuana can be used to help patients that suffer with ailments such as glaucoma, hypoglycemia, cancer, nerve damage, severe back pain,

For example, much earlier in 1996, California’s Proposition 215 stated that people who are twenty-one and older could possess eight ounces of marijuana and grow six mature plants in their homes. More recently, Montana’s Initiative said that people could possess only one ounce of usable marijuana and four plants. Within the past three years, Maryland’s House bill allowed people to have only a thirty-day supply of marijuana with the total amount to be determined. Other states, including New York, Pennsylvania, and most recently, West Virginia, followed Maryland with similar laws and requirements. For their own safety, patients need to go through the thorough task of knowing exactly how much marijuana they can legally possess and grow and which conditions are even approved for medical marijuana -- cancer, glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, or chronic or debilitating diseases, like seizures, spasms, Tourette’s Syndrome, or multiple sclerosis. Also, they must register as medical marijuana users but only in their own states because this registration is not recognized from state to state. Maryland, California, Arizona, and other states will not allow visiting patients to buy marijuana from their dispensaries.

Marijuana legislation in the United States seems to be divided between very subjective and objective credence’s. The objective perspective seems to be that marijuana is a substance that has medicinal properties and merits further research into its utilize as a substance that can be utilized for medical treatment. While the subjective perspective seems to be more fueled by propaganda than scientific research. All too often, arguments for and against the utilization of marijuana have been predicated more on emotion and personal opinion shaped by propaganda and the taboo subject of illicit drug use, than genuine scientific fact. This should not be what decides if there should be legitimate scientific research on the subject. Currently, marijuana is a schedule I controlled substance, indicating it is considered highly addictive and of no medical use. Due to the many claims that marijuana is of medical benefit, many states have passed laws that allows limited access of

The legalization of marijuana in other states has increased access to and acceptability of this drug for both medicinal and recreational purposes. In the absence of well-designed research and FDA approval, this creates unique challenges for both practitioners and regulators alike. Doctors are being pressured to recommend medical marijuana based off of the requests of the users. The regulations that have been put on marijuana are extremely loose fitting and hard to control