Michigan Medical Marijuana Law

The full text of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Law and Rules may be read here.

On Tuesday, November 4, 2008, by a 63% to 37% margin, the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act was passed with the full support of voters in all 83 counties. The initiative called Prop 1 was sponsored by the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care who gathered the required signatures to place the initiative on the ballot. Additional support from the Marijuana Policy Project, NORML, MINORML, StoptheDrugWar.com and a number of medical associations educated and motivated Michigan voters to stand up for patients rights and individual liberty by rejecting the factitious rhetoric offered by self interested members from the law enforcement community.

While the passage of this initiative protects Michigan's medical marijuana patients and caregivers from prosecution under state law, federal law still considers cannabis a schedule 1 narcotic and will continue to arrest and prosecute those who use or cultivate it. A good resource that dissects the Michigan law is blog of attorney Michael Komorn. The site discusses aspects of the law from a lawyers perspective.

The Medical Marijuana Program will be administered by the Bureau of Health Professions within the Michigan Department of Community Health. The MDCH's Proposal 1 Q & A answers some basic questions about Proposal 1.

On Monday, December 8, 2008, MDCH rolled out their Michigan Medical Marijuana Program. Currently, their site describes the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program, and provides general information and a FAQ about the program. The MDCH's website now also contains application forms for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program.