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Medical Cannabis Bill Goes to Senate Committee Wednesday

Medical cannabis advocate Melissa Mentele and her organization New Approach South Dakota are inviting supporters to Patients Day at the Capitol on Wednesday, February 10, to support Senate Bill 171, the last-minute Legislative incarnation of their failed ballot measure to legalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Wednesday’s event will likely coincide with SB 171’s first committee hearing, which Senate Health and Human Services Committee chairman Senator Bruce Rampelberg (R-30/Rapid City) says should happen Wednesday morning.

The first argument offered by Governor Dennis Daugaard and other opponents of medical cannabis is that allowing such medicinal use is the first step to legalizing recreational pot-smoking. Yet if we read the actual bill, we see that this proposal keeps current prohibitions on toking up in public as well as using pot, medicinal or otherwise, in any way that puts others at risk:

Section 18. That the code be amended by adding a NEW SECTION to read:
This Act does not authorize any person to engage in, and does not prevent the imposition of any civil, criminal, or other penalty for engaging in, the following conduct:

  1. Undertaking any task under the influence of cannabis, when doing so would constitute negligence or professional malpractice;
  2. Possessing cannabis or otherwise engaging in the medical use of cannabis in any correctional facility;
  3. Smoking cannabis:
    1. On any form of public transportation; or
    2. In any public place or any place that is open to the public;
  4. Operating, navigating, or being in actual physical control of any motor vehicle, aircraft, train, or motorboat while under the influence of cannabis, except that a registered qualifying patient or nonresident cardholder is not considered to be under the influence of cannabis solely because of the presence of metabolites or components of cannabis that appear in insufficient concentration to cause impairment [Senate Bill 171, introduced 2016.02.05].

Senate Bill 171 by itself won’t put pot in any recreational user’s hands. The only way to get pot under this bill is essentially by getting a doctor to prescribe it. Show me a doctor who will prescribe you a drug just because you want it, absent any medical need, and I’ll show you a doctor who will be sitting next to Annette Bosworth at the next state medical board hearing. Get that prescription, and you still can’t run out to the head shop; you have to take your doctor’s note and $20 to the state Department of Health to get a registry identification card, which is good for a maximum of one year. Your doctor can cancel that card at any time by notifying the DOH that you’re fine or that marijuana won’t do you any more good.

With those controls in place, the main question is perhaps whether any doctors would prescribe cannabis for their patients. Over in Minnesota, which has legalized medical marijuana, doctors are hesitating:

Minnesota doctors are slow to accept medical cannabis as a treatment option for lack of scientific evidence, fear of addiction and lack of educational programs, according to a new survey released to a state task force Tuesday.

Dr. Charles Reznikoff, a member of the Task Force on Medical Cannabis Therapeutic Research, the group responsible for gathering information about the program, conducted the survey. Reznikoff is an addiction specialist who practices at Hennepin County Medical Center. He sought opinions of 262 doctors from four institutions who practice all across the state.

The majority of doctors said qualifying conditions need to be more clear. They said they didn’t want to be burdened by the program; they’re nervous to register patients; and cautious to prescribe medical cannabis when so many patients abuse opioids and heroin addiction is a concern.

“There is a lot of worry about the opioid thing,” Reznikoff said. “They’re scared of entering anything that could be that” [Riham Feshir, “Here’s Why Minnesota Doctors Are Slow to Prescribe Cannabis,” MPR News, 2016.01.13].

The next question is whether legislators should make the decision for all doctors and kill SB 171 in committee Wednesday or whether they should pass SB 171 and let doctors evaluate the science and decide for themselves and their patients.

59 Comments

  1. jerry 2016-02-07 16:18

    Well, what do you know. A medical cannabis thread with no comments. This post by Cory really explains that their is no real danger to some getting medical marijuana unless they have the prescription for it. Just like any other prescribed medication, it must be filled by an actual doctor. As this works for treating many medical issues, it really should not be a problem for the legislature to pass. There has to be a way to provide medical treatment for those that seek it and have the doctor’s orders for that treatment.

  2. Roger Cornelius 2016-02-07 17:03

    Jerry,
    Don’t hold your breath, I’m certain that as soon as Lynn sees this thread she’ll be adding her usual crap.

  3. Richard Schriever 2016-02-07 17:09

    Well Cory, I can relate to you that my family physician back in the ’60s, when I was a mere youth, had proudly displayed on his office wall, a receipt from the FDA saying that he had paid in full, his federal marijuana tax.

  4. grudznick 2016-02-07 17:19

    If they put some more serious consequences on those who smoke week for recreation on this bill it could really get some legs under it.

  5. larry kurtz 2016-02-07 17:32

    All it takes is the political will to be revolutionary.

  6. jerry 2016-02-07 17:45

    I remember when gaming first was spoken of in South Dakota. Watertown already had gaming and found it to be successful in its entirety. Then came the vote for statewide gaming. At first, it was having difficulties and then legislators who supported gaming, went all over the state promoting it. The gaming passed because it was regulated and everyone knew the rules and how it pertained to each location. I view this the same way. As long as it is regulated and done in a way that protects and serves the public, there should not be a problem. If down the road something would appear that would seem to cause and issue, we have the legislator to make the needed changes.

  7. larry kurtz 2016-02-07 18:06

    Walter Dale Miller was that revolutionary, Jerry. He forged an alliance with Democrats that withstands today, warts and all.

  8. larry kurtz 2016-02-07 18:25

    Jack (Daniels) Morris and Tom (Zeput) Collins watched and reported as the Syndicate Building burned into Lee Street their windows cracking from across the street.

    We’re Jack and Tom, Bill and Mayor Blair building from the ashes of the Janklow years.

    There’s a saying from the oil patch, no doubt most of you know it, “God, give us back the the Boom and we promise not to piss it away again.”

  9. grudznick 2016-02-07 18:38

    I credit Apa.

  10. larry kurtz 2016-02-07 18:43

    Jerry Apa has evolved from a parasite to a parade barker.

  11. grudznick 2016-02-07 18:51

    Everyone loves a parade.

  12. larry kurtz 2016-02-07 18:53

    Apa is a Catholic like Henry Shama before him and like Larry Shama is today. Lead is dependent on Deadwood and on the means to replace a water supply with lead pipes: The Flint of LawCo: scary ain’t it?

  13. grudznick 2016-02-07 19:46

    Lead has Mr. Gibilisco and his big brain to help them figure out how to haul bottled water to wash their foreheads before church.

  14. Bob Newland 2016-02-07 21:29

    Daugaard and the rest of the opponents are just plain stupid. ANYONE who wants cannabis in SoDak can get it. I haven’t had to wait more than 15 minutes during the past 20 years to get a bag.

    The irony is that those who need it most are likely to be those who have not had and maintained connections their whole lives. The sick, disabled and dying sufferers of some of the most miserable health conditions known are the ones who suffer most from lack of ability to purchase this relatively easily obtainable remedy.

  15. grudznick 2016-02-07 21:33

    15 minutes can be an eternity if you are really Jonesing.

  16. Lynn 2016-02-08 04:48

    Grudz,

    Don’t forget those skateboarders being in their teens and early 20s in Mitchell at the skate park need theirs too evidently. Why I’m still trying to figure that out for medical reasons but it was sure promoted that way.

  17. larry kurtz 2016-02-08 06:33

    Governor Daugaard is evolving which is more than we can say for the people of Mitchell.

  18. mike from iowa 2016-02-08 07:44

    People everywhere are dying of nasty diseases and here you have a grudz cliche-ing people to even nastier deaths. Compassionate conservatism served with a smirk.

  19. Lynn 2016-02-08 08:18

    Grudz,

    You know what else is amazing according to the claims of those pushing this simple and innocent little plant that there is no way anyone could get addicted to via chemical dependency or no one has ever died of an overdose?

    It can cure every ailment ever known to mankind!

    Need a lung transplant? Smoke this stuff and you will grow a new lung!

    Lost an arm or another limb to an accident? Smoke this stuff and it will grow back!

    Had a very traumatic experience in your life which caused PTSD? Don’t ever worry about wasting time and money with individual or group therapy and developing a healthy lifestyle including coping techniques. Smoke this stuff and problem solved! Oh yeah! Regarding Colorado declining medical marijuana for treatment of PTSD on 3 separate times even though they legalized recreational and medical MJ? They don’t know what they are doing!

    Simply amazing all the miracle cures this little weed plant can provide or so they say. :)

  20. larry kurtz 2016-02-08 08:20

    Lynn, you’re a liar and a fraud.

  21. Bob Newland 2016-02-08 09:29

    Lynndiot (who lives in Lynndiotville): not only are you a liar and a fraud, you remind me a little of Marco Rubio. Rubio said, “It’s a bad thing to be raped, but you should suck it up and have the baby.” Sounds like you.

    The fact is, whether or not you bother to check it out, that cannabis does provide relief to a wide range of patients with a wide range of adverse medical conditions. No one has ever claimed, as you say in a lie, that cannabis will grow new organs or limbs.

  22. Lynn 2016-02-08 09:36

    Convicted Felon Bob Newland,

    Your associate Ryan Gaddy an Admin from SDAP has done a swell job of promoting those outlandish claims. SDAP is like a pot porn meme site. NASD has done a pretty good job themselves but not quite to that extent. I feel bad for the folks that fall for that rubbish hoping for relief and realize they were told anything just so a few others could get their “fix” or profit off of them. Sad indeed!

  23. Bob Newland 2016-02-08 11:03

    I was wondering, Lynndiot. How much prison time is about right for alleviating one’s pain or nausea with cannabis?

  24. jerry 2016-02-08 12:00

    Funny as hell man. I tell you this, it really does not matter to me if you are for this or against it, reading the same crap over and over again is entertaining to me. Ground Hog Day may be over, but is it really over?

  25. grudznick 2016-02-08 12:12

    I’m with you there, Jerry. Funny as all hell.

  26. mike from iowa 2016-02-08 12:51

    Lynn’ your brain called. It said you knocked it off the night stand and it is under the bed covered with liberal dust bunnies who are turning it on to pot. It wants that you should pick up some munchies if you can find your way back home.

  27. jake 2016-02-08 15:34

    If Daugard or Jackley (or someone in their family) came down with cancer or MS–they’d be the first to be applying this tried and true method of pain relief..

  28. Daniel Buresh 2016-02-08 15:55

    Lynn is making my head hurt. So much misinformation. So much stupidity. It’s come to the point that I would actively support silencing her. I don’t ever feel that way about anyone so that says something.

  29. bearcreekbat 2016-02-08 16:42

    Ignore Lynn’s depressing sarcasm, misinformation campaign and hostility. Focus instead on some good news:

    Ten year old Alexis was hit with a form of epilepsy that resulted in multiple seizures each week, including some that stopped her from breathing. None of the meds her doctors tried helped, and some made her seizures worse and more frequent. Her parents moved her from Texas to Colorado in an effort to try to control her seizure disorder with cannabis oil. They report that she now has been seizure free for 202 straight days and has been able to live her life like a normal child again.

    http://haleighshope.com/testimonial-view/alexis/

    It’s time our SD kids had access to this remarkable option.

  30. jerry 2016-02-08 17:52

    Lynn does not care about suffering. She only wants to argue on nothing that has merits. You can take her posts from months ago and see that she is like Marco Rubio, just repeating the same stupid crap over and over again.

  31. Mel Mentele 2016-02-08 22:32

    Bear

    One of the amazing things is the medicine Alexis is on is made by my friend Jason Cranford the founder of Hope Foundation. He has said when SD has a strong medical bill in place he will allow his genetics to be grow and extracted in SD. In addition to Haleigh’s Hope he also makes a product for Crohn’s patients called Cannatol & a seizure rescue inhaler is still in trials. His medicine is also what GA Representative Allen Peake admitted to bringing into GA to treat their pediatric patients. Alexis and her father Dean are wonderful people and if you want any further info on Case Studies through the hospital in CO they are in or Coltyn Turner a pediatric Crohn’s Patient are in please look me up on FB. Wendy Turner Coltyn’s mom is one of my dearest friends.

    Good to see you all researching and being compassionate. SD patients thank you!

  32. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 13:34

    As I watch the medical revolution that is the cannabis movement, I cannot help but realize that cannabis is very likely essential to the health and wellbeing of the human body. The phytocannabinoids produced by the plant are in essence exactly what the body needs to maintain a healthy, balanced endocannabinoid system. So if you think you are a recreational user of cannabis, you might want to think again.

    http://www.coloradoan.com/story/opinion/2016/02/15/erica-freeman-column-marijuana-use-medical/80404354/?hootPostID=7b7c91969867c00be180e5b2616c93bc

  33. Lynn 2016-02-15 19:59

    Lar, I believe it is just the opponents that are remaining to testify on this but if there are proponents I’d love to see you go testify with a straight face trying to tell the legislators what you posted at 13:34. I’d be watching them trying to keep a straight face also and fight not to burst out laughing at such BS.

  34. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 20:02

    Ly, God may not be enough for religious states: they lead the nation in anti-depressant use.

    As another brutal winter smothers the Great Plains leaving residents on the verge of suicide one writer sees hope.

  35. grudznick 2016-02-15 20:05

    It would be a banner day in the old South Dakota legislatures when Mr. kurtz showed up to testify for cannabis use. I suspect it is likely he would be hauled out in irons for various outstanding warrants and for acts against the sanctity of the legislating meeting. What theatre!

  36. Lynn 2016-02-15 20:19

    Brutal Winter? Great snow conditions to go skiing. It’s awesome! :) I’ll trade this winter any day rather than deal with Fire Ants, Scorpions and other nasty critters that would not survive up here.

  37. Lynn 2016-02-15 20:21

    Grudz it would be quite a show! Your so right! :)

  38. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 20:22

    Ski Plankinton!

  39. grudznick 2016-02-15 20:25

    Ski Wessington Springs! Did you know they had a hill there you could ski at one time? You could still probably ski on it but the locals tore down all the fancy ski devices.

  40. Lynn 2016-02-15 20:29

    Grudz with cross country skis all you need is snow and ski just about anywhere. Moon light skiing under the stars or daylight is great! We can let Lar hang out and grumble about his Fire Ants and the other nasty critters down there.

  41. grudznick 2016-02-15 20:37

    That sounds very fun, Ms. Lynn. If I was a dozen years younger I’d try sliding around myself on the flat, where there are no fire ants or scorpions.

  42. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 20:44

    uh, grud: nobody has verified Lye’s gender. Calling it Ms. is just speculation.

  43. Lynn 2016-02-15 20:52

    Lar, Verifying gender now? Don’t tell me you want the job to verify this poor kids up here to make sure they are going to the designated bathrooms and showers. Really?

  44. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 20:57

    show me yours and i’ll show you mine, your royal trollness.

  45. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 20:59

    grud, upload a picture of your junk, too.

  46. Lynn 2016-02-15 21:01

    Lar, Your not coming close to me. Gross!

  47. larry kurtz 2016-02-15 21:06

    Lye, you’re Pat Powers’ shower mate. Gross.

  48. caheidelberger Post author | 2016-02-15 22:05

    To quote Larry, you poor bastards.

  49. Lynn 2016-02-16 06:08

    Cory,

    Care to elaborate on that?

  50. Lynn 2016-02-16 07:16

    lol

  51. Happy Camper 2016-02-16 07:33

    Captain they’re trapped in the space time continuum we can’t just leave em. What, warp 10 no she’ll break up.

    Engage Ensign that’s an order.

  52. caheidelberger Post author | 2016-02-16 07:38

    Seal the rift. Photon torpedoes.

  53. Bill Dithmer 2016-03-17 12:15

    Right now, I’m proud to be frm Missouri. Tuesday, the state decriminalized pot starting in January 2017. Up to ten grams on your person.

    Ya I’m happy.

    The Blindman

Comments are closed.