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Joni Whiting[/caption]
At a press conference held by Minnesotans for Compassionate Care last week to announce the introduction of a medical marijuana bill, several patients shared their heart-wrenching stories with reporters and assembled lawmakers.
Once of those people was Joni Whiting, whose daughter found relief from cancer pain with medical marijuana. Her testimony is available at the Star Tribune.
According to a new poll conducted by Public Policy Polling, nearly two-thirds of Minnesota voters support changing state law to allow people with serious and terminal illnesses to use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it. The poll also found that the majority of voters would disapprove of their county sheriff or county attorney working to defeat such a bill.
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Joni Whiting (Center) (Photo by Andrew VonBank)[/caption]
"Personal medical decisions should be guided by someone who graduated from medical school, not law school or the police academy," said Joni Whiting of Jordan, whose late daughter, Stephanie, used medical marijuana to relieve the extreme pain and nausea associated with cancer and chemotherapy. "Medical marijuana made life bearable for my daughter in her final months. No elected official should have the power to take that away."
The results of the statewide survey come as state lawmakers prepare a bipartisan bill that would make it legal for Minnesota residents with debilitating medical conditions to access and use medical marijuana if recommended to do so by their physicians. The bill is expected to be introduced within the next two weeks.