Pubdate: Thu, 01 Nov 2012
Source: Billings Gazette, The (MT)
Copyright: 2012 The Billings Gazette
Contact: http://billingsgazette.com/app/contact/?contact=letter
Website: http://www.billingsgazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/515
Author: Misty Carey

'NO' ON IR-124 ENSURES ACCESS FOR THOSE WHO NEED MEDICAL MARIJUANA

SB-423, the Montana Legislature's attempt to prohibit medical 
marijuana, has had a devastating effect on patients.

Greg was a finish carpenter until he developed a seizure disorder 
that made it dangerous for him to handle a saw. His doctors tried to 
find the right medication, but nothing worked. When I met him, he was 
in his late 50s, working as a swamper in a bar, seizing regularly, 
and drinking heavily.

He got his "green card," found the cannabis strains that worked for 
him, and was seizure-free for three years. Greg had also been trying 
to get sober -- dry spells as long as three weeks. Studies show that 
alcohol consumption among males drops significantly when medical 
cannabis is available to them.

Greg, as drinking people often do, got in a fistfight one night. The 
judge put him on probation and the DPHHS, in accordance with SB-423, 
pulled Greg's card. Two weeks later, Greg started seizing in his 
sleep. Day seizures were next. I'm no doctor, but I know that 
repeated seizures can cause small strokes and progressive physical 
and mental impairment. That's a pretty stiff price for a fistfight.

SB-423 appears on the November ballot as IR-124. Please remember Greg 
when you step into the voting booth. Vote "no" on IR-124.

Misty Carey

Bozeman
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom