Colorado is preparing to begin the largest state-funded study on the benefits of medical marijuana, The Denver Post reports. Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signed a bill that will distribute about $9 Million in grants to researchers. These studies will be unique because clinical trials on the kinds of marijuana products that Colorado citizens consume will be among the research conducted. The purpose of these studies is to research the effects of marijuana on the people in a setting where they can consume it legally.

Colorado is following suit in its research after California became the first state to fund medical marijuana research more than 12 years ago, and studies there have yielded results about the analgesic effects of certain doses. Dr. Larry Wolk is the executive director and chief medical officer of Colorado’s health department. While emphasizing that Colorado would mainly fund research on approved medical conditions, Wolk also stated that the state would look into funding other kinds of studies as well. Wolk hopes to begin accepting applications later this year, with funding starting in early 2015.

This is especially good news in light of a report released this week showing that the federal government has consistently stymied research into the potential benefits of marijuana.

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New Mexico is considering rule changes that would make the medical marijuana program less transparent and less accountable. The proposed rules would also make it harder for patients — many of whom are disabled veterans suffering from PTSD and chronic pain — to access their medicine. Thousands of seriously ill patients are worried that their medicine will be taken away.

Hearings are scheduled for next Monday, June 16.

The proposed rules would reduce the number of plants that patients could grow from twelve currently to six. They would also create a new $50 patient application fee, force patients to pay for their own criminal background checks, and remove necessary checks and balances in the system. They would also triple the annual fees licensed producers must pay, which would surely be reflected in medical cannabis prices.

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A University of Minnesota research group, led by chief researcher Kalpna Gupta, has found that the cannabinoids in marijuana can help treat pain caused by sickle cell disease, reports Minnesota Daily. The group has been running tests on mice and it has yielded good outcomes from those tests. The study says the next step is to move onto human trials; however, it is running into issues with Minnesota’s laws.

In order to take this next step, the research will be moved to California, where medical marijuana became legal almost 20 years ago. Minnesota, on the other hand, has a stricter medical marijuana law that will take effect next summer. This research may actually affect the Minnesota law, however, by providing evidence that could help add sickle cell disease to the qualifying health conditions for the program.

The conditions currently approved by Minnesota law include cancer, HIV/AIDS, glaucoma, and seizures. The Department of Health in Minnesota is presently creating a task force to investigate the therapeutic effects of marijuana. Dr. Gupta’s research is being funded by the National Institute of Health’s grant, and is intended to test the effects of vaporized marijuana on 35 sickle cell disease patients at the beginning of July. Minnesota’s medical marijuana laws are some of the strictest in the nation, but the research Dr. Gupta is doing may be able to help more patients find relief.

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On Tuesday, Democratic primary voters in South Carolina approved a non-binding medical marijuana question. With all counties having reported, the unofficial results show the question was supported by an overwhelming 75%-25% margin! The question asked voters if “medical marijuana [should] be legalized for use in cases of severe, chronic illnesses when documented by a physician.”

While this was a non-binding question, meaning it does not change the law at all, the overwhelming support sends a clear message to South Carolina lawmakers, and Democrats specifically, that their constituents support compassionate laws.

Earlier this spring, the South Carolina Legislature took a step toward sensible marijuana laws by passing legislation allowing a limited class of patients to use marijuana low in THC, but it is so incomplete that MPP does not consider South Carolina a medical marijuana state.

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On Tuesday, MPP and allied advocates launched a ballot referendum committee to make marijuana legal, taxed, and regulated for adults in Massachusetts. The committee is called the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Massachusetts and will allow MPP to begin raising money within Massachusetts. Massachusetts voters have shown a desire to reform their marijuana laws, first by decriminalizing simple possession in 2008, and then by approving a medical marijuana ballot initiative in 2012. In addition, a recent poll taken by WBUR/MassINC Polling Group found that 49% of Massachusetts voters support making marijuana legal.

MPP’s Mason Tvert weighed in on the future of MPP’s involvement in Massachusetts in Commonwealth Magazine, stating, “We’re going to be spending the next year working to build a coalition. We really want to replicate the Colorado process, and not just the winning part. We spent six months drafting the best possible initiative, and the most effective system we felt was possible. That’s our goal in Massachusetts: to get a large group of stakeholders, and write the best possible law. If the legislature wants to participate in drafting the law, they’ll have the opportunity. And if not, and if we believe it’s something the voters want, we have no choice but to take it to the ballot.”

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Voters going to the polls in Maine on Tuesday may be asked to sign a petition for a ballot initiative that would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana on private property, reports Portland’s NBC affiliate WCSH. The group responsible for the petition, Citizens for a Safer Maine, believes that marijuana should be regulated and taxed similarly to alcohol: Only allowing those over 21 to consume marijuana.

MPP’s David Boyer, the political director in Maine, commented on the situation, saying,

“It is illogical. We have bigger fish to fry. There are violent crimes going on, there are property crimes, and that is where our police resources should be spent.” He also added, “We feel like this is the right message to send to kids that, look, marijuana is for adults 21 and up. Right now, they are not hearing that message, and, when you turn 21, you can use marijuana, you can use alcohol; if you choose, both can be used responsibly.”

Even if the ordinance passes, it would be up to local law enforcement to decide whether to follow the will of voters or continue to enforce state law, but it would put pressure on the state to change its policies regarding marijuana use. The supporters of this ordinance also hope to push for a statewide ballot initiative, which could potentially be voted on in the 2016 elections.

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[caption id="attachment_7716" align="alignright" width="225"] President Enrique Peña Nieto[/caption]

Mexico’s president is hinting that he is considering making marijuana legal south of the border, San Francisco Weekly reports. In an interview published Sunday in El Pais, President Enrique Peña Nieto said that the drug war is a failed policy and that it does not make sense for Mexico to continue its marijuana policy when the United States is becoming increasingly lenient.

The current policy in Mexico is that small quantities of marijuana are legal, but cultivation and distribution remain criminal acts. Mexico has recently seen a drop in marijuana prices for cartel-connected farmers as a result of the United States regulating large portions of the marijuana market here. In addition to his comments on the drug war, President Nieto added that Mexico should not continue on what he called a “path of inconsistency,” as the United States is reconsidering its own failed drug policies.

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Last week, an article by columnist Maureen Dowd highlighted the need for educating marijuana consumers, particularly those who are inexperienced with the substance. In the legal marijuana market, edible products are heavily regulated and labeled, but consumers occasionally ignore the warnings on the packaging, sometimes with dangerous results.

MPP's Mason Tvert discusses the issue further here on MSNBC:

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[caption id="attachment_7705" align="alignright" width="268"] Judge Thomas Shedden[/caption]

An Arizona judge issued a decision Friday claiming that State Health Director Will Humble acted illegally by denying PTSD patients access to medical marijuana, reports the Arizona Daily Sun. According to Judge Thomas Shedden, Humble utilized the dearth of scientific studies regarding PTSD and marijuana usage as grounds for denying medical marijuana to patients, many of whom are veterans. Shedden claims that Humble should have listened to testimony from medical professionals who claimed medical marijuana had helped their patients.

Arizona passed a ballot initiative making medical marijuana legal in 2010, but PTSD was not included in the qualifying conditions. Proponents of adding PTSD tried to do so in 2012, and then again in 2013. Following the 2012 proposal, Humble contracted the University of Arizona to study the effects of marijuana in conjunction with PTSD, which produced results of “varying quality.” Humble responded to Judge Shedden’s decision saying,

“There’s plenty of anecdotal evidence. At the hearings that we had, one family after the next came up and personally testified that they believed that marijuana provided relief for their PTSD. But throughout my entire career I’ve really focused on using scientific evidence really as the cornerstone of good, effective decision making when it comes to public policy,” he said. “And that evidence is not there."

Unfortunately, the federal government has a history of making it very difficult to study marijuana, unless the purpose of the study is to determine negative effects. In 2011, Dr. Sue Sisley at the University of Arizona was denied permission to research the effects of marijuana on PTSD in veterans. A new study is awaiting final approval from the DEA.

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You read that correctly — Congress just voted to end the federal government’s war on medical marijuana!

During a debate regarding a Justice Department funding bill, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), a longtime MPP ally, offered an amendment intended to block DEA raids on medical marijuana dispensaries. It passed by a surprisingly wide margin — 219-189. The amendment will not become law until it is signed by the president, but we’re well on our way.

MPP played a key role in building support for this measure, and we couldn’t have done it without our supporters.

We have had a lot of victories since MPP was founded in 1995, but this is one of the biggest — not just in the organization’s history, but in the history of the marijuana policy reform movement.

[caption id="attachment_7699" align="aligncenter" width="474"] Rep. Rohrabacher with MPP's Rob Kampia and Dan Riffle[/caption]

We worked with Congressman Rohrabacher and former Congressman Maurice Hinchey on this amendment for more than a decade, and our lobbying presence in Congress has never been stronger. This year alone, we met with staffers from more than 100 congressional offices, as well as dozens of members in person.  With this victory, even more doors will be open to us in the future.

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