Medical marijuana, an issue that consistently divides Inland Southern California into pro-dispensary and anti-dispensary camps, broke new ground in the Midwest.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is not about getting high, it’s not about dope, it’s not about what our mothers told us when we went to college,” said Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie. (AP photo)
The legislation would forge a four-year pilot program that would include background checks for both patients and caregivers and allow the state to control the amount of marijuana a patient can possess.
The issue is an familiar one in California.
According to a Field Poll published by PE.com earlier this year, California voters support — by a 5-4 margin — legalizing marijuana. It’s the boldest support pot has secured since the Field Poll first gathered public opinion on the subject in 1969, when 13 percent favored legalization.
The only age category where the majority doesn’t back legalization is 65-and-older.
Court battles over medical marijuana clinics have dotted the Inland Southern California landscape in recent years.
There are 19 states — including California — that permit medical marijuana use. But that hasn’t stopped many local cities from taking a “not in our city limits” attitude toward clinics. Riverside is the lead case in an legal drive by California cities and counties to apply local zoning ordinances to ban medical pot dispensaries.
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Here’s this week’s report on the Illinois vote from the Associated Press:
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois physicians could prescribe marijuana to patients with specific terminal illnesses or debilitating medical conditions under legislation approved Wednesday by the state House.
The proposed legislation creates a four-year pilot program that requires patients and caregivers to undergo background checks, limits the amount of marijuana patients can have at a time, and establishes cultivation centers and selling points.
Lawmakers voted 61-57 to send the measure to the state Senate, where a version of the bill was approved in 2009. Senate President John Cullerton’s spokeswoman said this week that he supports the legislation.
Gov. Pat Quinn hasn’t said whether he would sign the measure should it reach his desk.
Supporters said marijuana can relieve continual pain without triggering the harmful effects of other prescription drugs. They touted the legislation as a compassionate measure that would save patients from the agony caused by illnesses such as cancer, multiple sclerosis and HIV.
“I know every single one of you have compassion in your heart, this is the day to show it,” said Rep. Lou Lang, the sponsor of the bill. “… Let people feel better, let them have a better quality of life.”
The bill lists more than 30 medical conditions for which patients can be prescribed marijuana.
The legislative proposal prohibits patients from growing their own marijuana. Instead, the state must approve 22 cultivation centers, as well as 60 dispensaries where patients could buy the drug after getting a prescription from a doctor with whom they have an existing relationship. The legislation sets a 2.5 ounce limit per patient per purchase.
Patients who choose to take marijuana automatically consent tosubmit themselves to a sobriety field test should a police officer suspect they were driving under the influence of the drug.
Lang, a Democrat from Skokie, said the bill is the strictest in the nation. Still, opponents say the program would encourage the use of marijuana for recreational purposes.
“It’s going to cause confusion in our communities,” said Republican Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro. “… I will guarantee you that we will be back adjusting this legislation … because of the problems that can occur or we will be back in this floor for the legalization of marijuana.”
Lang and other supporters have been trying to legalize medical marijuana for several years. A measure that had cleared the Senate failed in the House in 2011, when six Republicans and 50 Democrats voted yes.
Quinn on Wednesday said the bill’s sponsor hasn’t reached out to him to build support on the measure.
The Democratic governor said he was recently visited by a veteran suffering from war founds who was helped by the medical use of marijuana. Quinn said he was “impressed by his heartfelt feeling” on the issue.
“I’m certainly open-minded to it,” he said.
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