cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Bill Introduced!





Medical Marijuana Bill Introduced!
Posted by FoM on March 03, 1999 at 16:30:24 PT

WASHINGTON Congress should eliminate federal restrictions on states that allow marijuana use for medical purposes such as for relieving AIDS-related nausea and glaucoma, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said Wednesday.
``The irony is, of course, that many drugs much more harmful, much more powerful, much more addictive than marijuana can be prescribed,'' said Frank, who introduced legislation - as he has done twice before - to end the federal restrictions.Frank's bill, introduced Tuesday, would reclassify marijuana as a Schedule II drug, meaning that it could be prescribed by doctors under certain conditions, just as cocaine and other controlled substances are. Prescriptions for such drugs are subject to federal and state review.Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona and Nevada have permitted medical use of the drug. While persons using marijuana for medical purposes don't face state prosecution in the six states, they could still face federal prosecution, said Frank.Frank isn't hopeful that the Republican-controlled Congress will pass his bill. Last fall, the House adopted, 310-93, a resolution that said marijuana is a dangerous and addictive drug and should not be legalized for medical use. Supporters of that bill said to legalize the drug for medical use send the wrong message to teen-agers, and that scientific testing has not proved a medical use for marijuana.But the New England Journal of Medicine has editorialized in favor of medical marijuana and the American Medical Association has urged the National Institutes of Health to support more research on the subject.On Wednesday, Canada's health minister authorized clinical trials to determine if marijuana is a useful medicine for people suffering from terminal illnesses and other painful conditions.And a report from the International Drug Control Board concluded last month that in-depth and impartial scientific studies should be conducted into marijuana's possible medical benefits. By MELISSA B. ROBINSON Associated Press Writer 
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