Medical Use Of Mj. Government Wants Its Cut.

[greenbuddha]

 

U.S. government attempting to profit off of medical marijuana

by Dan Riffle

November 22, 2011

 

I know what you’re thinking. “The government already profits off of medical marijuana through forfeiture laws every time it raids a dispensary and takes all its cash and equipment without ever pressing charges.” Well, yes. You’re right. But never underestimate our government’s ability to find new and exciting ways to display its hypocrisy.

 

As we told you on our blog last week, the U.S. government owns a patent on the use of some of marijuana’s components as antioxidant and neuroprotectant. This is despite the fact that it also classifies marijuana as a Schedule I substance with “no accepted medical use” and a “high potential for abuse.”

 

Late last week, the U.S. government published a notice in the Federal Register, where the government publishes all potential regulatory actions so that the public can provide comments, stating that it was considering licensing its rights to that patent to a company called KannaLife Sciences. The purpose of the license is: “[t]he development and sale of cannabinoid(s) and cannabidiol(s) based therapeutics as antioxidants and neuroprotectants for use and delivery in humans, for the treatment of hepatic encephalopathy …”

 

How a substance with “no accepted medical use” could be used to treat anything is a mystery. Of course, you and I know better. We know that there are hundreds of studies, including the gold-standard “double-blind, placebo-controlled” variety, showing marijuana and its components are effective in treating myriad ailments. Sadly, we haven’t yet begun to grasp its full potential because of federal obstruction of research (PDF) into marijuana’s medical potential, even for troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

 

So good luck Kannalife, you’re going to need it. The same government that’s licensing patent rights with one hand is busy blocking the research you’ll need to do with the other. It’s called hypocrisy.

 

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[Croppled1]

The Government's involvement in medicine in general has created more health risks as often as not . The importance of access so that educated health consumers can acquire " pure " medications is of the utmost importance now for many Americans and more are realizing it everyday .

 

Having been a severe chronic pain patient for over 16 years who was fortunate to be able to draw off the knowledge of one other family member whom had also been in a similar situation for over 50 years I can tell you the Government has often destroyed the efficacy or discouraged use of medicines under the guise of stopping '"abuse " while profiting cronies involved , destroying patient benefit and even putting the abusers at risk of death if not non abusers whom also have to ingest the ingredients added to prevent more rapid ingestion by various means . .

 

The harm done to individuals by introducing the concept of substance abuse into medical treatment is horrendous and equal to or greater then the real dangers faced from any patients attempting to beneficially alter the chemical balances of their bodies willingly due to terrible suffering that they cannot tolerate . Though I am only in my 50's I have already outlived several of my friends who left this earth willingly due to their reality being more then they could stand . 1/7 severe chronic pain patients will choose to do the same sadly if they do not find comfort .and treatments can alter their mental states . Currently Doctors treating pain only measure physical pain but never the mental pain their medications and changes in hormones that severe pain can drain cause . Patients need to fight for the recording of both through treatments .

 

. I really do not think most people can grasp the reality that many individual's suffer without any hope of relief in mental or physical pain and have tried everything under the Sun before cannabis , pushing through tolerance , using imagery , visualization which still isn't enough . Cannabis really helps people and just maybe it is because it gets them high or helps them feel better . Watch the Government try to alter that next just like they do research with ground up stems seeds and leaf of low quality product a fraction of the strength of the non toxic cannabis patients now grow themselves .

 

When ever someone says Marinol is a adequate substitute for cannabis ask them why a person can die from the toxic effects of the synthetic( low incidence but higher then cannabis's 0 ) but nobody ever has from the natural herb . Ask them what about the other 250 known cannabinoids that exist in natural herbal cannabis ?

 

It is time we stopped allowing the Government to alter our medications because the truth is this is just another way prohibitionists are taking away freedom and personal choice from patients desperately fighting to survive with dignity and quality of life . Sadly ideals really no longer apply to those just struggling for another quality day , hour or few minutes here and there . Cultivating , Curing and using natural herbal cannabis helps many patients - non regulated it would be nearly free . Is Government helping here ? Happy Thanksgiving . .

 

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000145