cannabisnews.com: Gore Is Open To Medical Marijuana 





Gore Is Open To Medical Marijuana 
Posted by FoM on December 14, 1999 at 19:57:36 PT
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press Writer 
Source: The Associated Press
Vice President Al Gore said during a televised forum Tuesday night that he is open to the idea of letting doctors prescribe marijuana. An audience member asked Gore during the WNDS-TV forum whether states should have the authority to decide whether marijuana can be prescribed for medical uses. 
In response, Gore said his sister died of cancer in 1984 and that her doctor had prescribed marijuana for her. She refused to take it, but Gore said, "If it had worked for her, then I think she should have had the ability to get her pain relieved that way." The Democratic presidential candidate added: "I do not favor legalizing marijuana. But where you have sufficient controls, I think doctors ought to have that option." The comments put Gore on an equal footing with Bill Bradley, his rival for the Democratic nomination, who said during the same forum two weeks ago that he would consider supporting the medicinal use of marijuana after further study. The Clinton-Gore administration has vigorously opposed marijuana initiatives on state ballots, saying they would prejudge clinical research to determine the safety of marijuana. After the forum, Gore tried to clarify his statements by saying he believes doctors should be allowed to prescribe marijuana only under certain limited circumstances where research proves no other options will help a patient. "If there is a research-based, scientific decision that there are no alternatives in certain circumstances, then that ought to be taken at face value," he said. Gore said the initiatives taken by some states are too broad and open the door to de facto legalization. Gore campaign spokesman Chris Lehane said that in 1984 it was legal in Tennessee to prescribe marijuana. At an earlier forum in Nashua, Gore softened his almost daily criticism of Bradley's health care plan, but saved his complaints for the tail end of a speech. Gore didn't leave out any of his arguments against Bradley's plan - that it eliminates Medicaid, doesn't do enough to stabilize Medicare, forces senior citizens to continue paying high prescription drug costs and uses up the projected budget surplus. But he prefaced his comments by saying he had no intention of attacking Bradley himself. "I am not criticizing him personally. I will never launch a negative personal attack against him, but I am going to fight for quality healthcare I think people deserve in this country," said Gore. Bradley has called for replacing Medicaid, the federal-state health care program for the poor, with publicly subsidized vouchers so they can buy health insurance. "He's a good man with a bad plan," Gore said.  Pubdate: December 14, 1999Copyright © 1995-1999 Excite Inc.
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