The rollout of Massachusetts’ medical marijuana program has been proceeding more slowly than anticipated, but a major milestone was reached last week with the approval of 11 dispensary applications. The Department of Public Health granted eleven provisional certificates on Friday, and it’s possible that some of the approved dispensaries will be ready to serve patients before the end of this year. The department had previously given preliminary approval to 20 applicants, but, after further review…

Former President Bill Clinton spoke Sunday on Meet the Press expressing his belief that states should ‘experiment’ with allowing adults to use marijuana recreationally, Washington Post reports. “I think we should leave it to the states,” Clinton said. “If the state wants to try it, they can. And they’ll be able to see what happens.” Though this seems to be a new take from the former president, he claimed that there are still many questions to be answered. He said, “This really is a time when there…

Spurred on by recent stories of epileptic children finding relief by using marijuana extracts that contain high amounts of cannabidiol (CBD), lawmakers have begun adopting bills allowing for medical marijuana to be used as long as it is minimally psychoactive, the Denver Post reports. The oil in these stories is made from specific strains of marijuana that are high in CBD and low in THC, the primary psychoactive compound in marijuana. The CBD-rich oils have been shown to dramatically decrease the…

[caption id="attachment_7800" align="alignright" width="200"] Sen. Mike Folmer[/caption] This afternoon, the Pennsylvania Senate Law and Justice Committee voted unanimously to approve a medical marijuana bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer and Sen. Daylin Leach. The bill is expected to proceed to the Senate Appropriations Committee next. This bipartisan measure would allow seriously ill Pennsylvanians to safely and legally use marijuana to treat their medical conditions. These patients and their…

State regulators and state police recently performed sting operations on 20 different marijuana stores in the Denver and Pueblo areas to determine compliance with state law, reports 9 News. The conclusion they reached was undisputed: None of the stores were breaking the law by selling marijuana to people under the age of 21. In Colorado, marijuana is regulated similarly to alcohol, including the stipulation that people without medical marijuana licenses may only purchase marijuana from retail establishments…

The Republican-controlled U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved an amendment Wednesday that is designed to prevent implementation of the District of Columbia decriminalization law that was approved earlier this year. The measure, introduced by Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), blocks funding of the new law, which eliminates jail time as a punishment for marijuana possession and establishes a $25 civil fine for first-time offenders. The amendment must now be approved by the full House, and MPP is working…

Two Austin City Council members are in support of a resolution that would make medical marijuana legal in Texas, KVUE reports. There is growing support for medical marijuana in Texas, especially among parents of children with mental disabilities and people with debilitating diseases. Thalia Michelle is the Executive Director of Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana for Autism (MOMMA). She believes that medical marijuana would beneficial to her son and other children with autism. "It could help with…

Advocates across the state of Michigan are hitting the streets in a major push to gather signatures that would decriminalize possession of small amounts marijuana in up to 18 cities. They have until July 29 to get the signatures needed to qualify for the ballot. If you have not gotten involved already, it’s not too late to help! Click here for a list of communities involved, the status of the local effort, and the names of local organizers to contact if you want to be part of the change. Three communities…

The Smarter Sentencing Act (S. 1410), sponsored by a bipartisan coalition including Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mike Lee (R-UT), would bring real change to destructive mandatory minimum sentences in our criminal justice system. Aside from saving billions of dollars spent on incarcerating nonviolent drug offenders, the bill would give judges more flexibility in sentencing those with minor criminal records. More specifically, some current mandatory minimum sentences would be cut in half. That means that…

Last Friday, after days of intense negotiation and more than a decade of advocacy, the Assembly and Senate voted to approve a limited medical marijuana program. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has already agreed to sign this bill, which includes several revisions he insisted upon. Finally, New York will be the 23rd state with an effective medical marijuana law. Click here for a summary of the Compassionate Care Act. Access to medical marijuana literally means the difference between life and death for many seriously…