Illegal Drug Conundrum

States are legalizing Marijuana.  The expansion of the Marijuana Prohibition Repeal started with Medical Marijuana and passed in conservative States.

Most State Legislatures passed these laws without voter approval, because voters were conflicted on the Marijuana issue.  It is considered a “gateway drug” that leads to other more dangerous drugs and voting to end the prohibition seems like tacit support to unleash more drug addiction.

The “unintended consequences” come from the fact that addiction treatment is a potentially very expensive revolving door. If we all paid our own medical bills, this wouldn’t be an issue, but parents with drug addicted children are saddled with endless costs and no guarantee of easy cures.

It sounds like the addiction treatment industry will expand far beyond its actual value based on poor results. We have the cart before the horse and should look at treatment cost before we take the leap.

Like any other treatment, some providers are more effective than others. They include sending patients to homeless shelters to show them the consequences of not quitting.

The case for legalizing Marijuana is made on two fronts. The first is to end the “war on drugs” by legalizing and regulating it. But the Drug Cartels have already shifted their business model to harder drugs, so this argument doesn’t work.

The other position is that we are free to purchase Rat Poison and other things that will kill you, but these are often quick and less costly to deal with except for funeral expenses.

The problem with legalizing Marijuana is that most employers have adopted drug tests into their employment processes and Marijuana users are not employed. Companies who want to keep drug testing will not relocate to States with lax Marijuana laws. Companies should be allowed to keep their drug tests to give Marijuana users the incentive to quit.

Making Marijuana possession a lesser crime does make sense. There should be no jail time, but there should be a stiff fine to give Marijuana user the incentive to quit.

I hope the States that have legalized Marijuana keep track of Marijuana use to see if it increases or decreases. They also need to keep track of addiction treatment costs by State and confirm whether or not Marijuana’s “gateway drug” reputation continues to be accurate.  There is a larger issue as States look at populations who are more interested in how the “feel” rather than what they accomplish. Another trend these States should track is “homelessness”. Addiction is the main driver of homelessness.

State Marijuana Laws in 2018 Map
Medical Marijuana Approved to Treat Severe Autism in Rhode Island
Court Agrees to Vacate Hundreds of Marijuana Misdemeanors in Seattle
California's New Marijuana Law Is a First But Likely Not the Last
The Pros and Cons of Allowing Medical Marijuana Use in Schools

Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia currently have passed laws broadly legalizing marijuana in some form.

The District of Columbia and 10 states -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington -- have adopted the most expansive laws legalizing marijuana for recreational use.

Most recently, Michigan voters approved a ballot measure permitting adults age 21 and over to purchase and possess recreational-use marijuana. Vermont became the first state earlier this year to legalize marijuana for recreational use through the legislative process, rather than via a ballot measure. Vermont's law allows for adults age 21 and over to grow and possess small amounts of cannabis. However, it does not permit the sale of nonmedical cannabis. Some other state laws similarly decriminalized marijuana, but did not initially legalize retail sales.

Most other states allow for limited use of medical marijuana under certain circumstances. Some medical marijuana laws are broader than others, with types of medical conditions that allow for treatment varying from state to state.

Louisiana, West Virginia and a few other states allow only for cannabis-infused products, such as oils or pills. Other states have passed narrow laws allowing residents to possess cannabis only if they suffer from select medical illnesses.

A number of states have also decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Our map shows current state laws and recently-approved ballot measures legalizing marijuana for medical or recreational purposes. Final rules for recently-passed medical marijuana laws are pending in some states.

Information is current as of Nov. 7, 2018.

NOTE: Although Louisiana is considered to have legalized marijuana on our map, it cannot be used in a form that can be smoked -- only oils, topical applications and other types. Some states shown above with no laws broadly legalizing medical marijuana provide limited access under certain rare circumstances. States like Alabama and Mississippi, for instance, maintain laws permitting medical marijuana for severe epileptic conditions.

Other states, such as Virginia, enacted laws decades ago allowing for the possession of marijuana if individuals received prescriptions from doctors. Federal law, however, prohibits doctors from prescribing marijuana, rendering those laws invalid. Doctors can only write a recommendation for medical marijuana, which is different than a prescription.

A bill to legalize recreational marijuana was approved by a House-Senate committee in the New Jersey Legislature Monday, a giant step toward making the cannabis plant and its products available in the state.

The state Department of Health this week approved medical marijuana use for people who suffer from some severe manifestations of autism, most of whom are children.

City Attorney Pete Holmes filed a motion in April asking the court to take the historic step for all convictions and charges between 1996 and 2010 "to right the injustices of a drug war that has primarily targeted people of color."

The unprecedented legislation implements an automatic statewide process to potentially reduce or dismiss sentences and records for crimes that are no longer illegal under state law. Other states are pursuing similar policies.

Of the 31 states and Washington, D.C., that have legalized medical marijuana, at least seven have enacted laws or regulations that allow students to use it on school grounds, in part because doing so could risk their federal funding.

http://www.governing.com/gov-data/safety-justice/state-marijuana-laws-map-medical-recreational.html

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader