Well, that sucks in all kinds of ways.
By “that,” I mean state Department of Health Services Director Will Humble’s decision not to add depression, migraines, post-traumatic stress disorder and generalized anxiety disorder to the list of ailments that qualify patients for MMJ cards. Humble said “no” on July 19 in a post on his blog. There isn’t enough science out there, he said.
“In short—I didn’t approve the petitions because of the lack of published data regarding the risks and benefits of using cannabis to treat or provide relief for the petitioned conditions,” Humble wrote.
The state consulted the University of Arizona in making the decision. Doctors there took a look at available literature and advised Humble.
Now, I don’t begrudge Humble. His decision makes sense, even to me, given the state of science on the matter. There are a lot of small studies out there—but many are little more than observational and anecdotal musings by physicians around the world who have tried cannabis to treat a variety of illnesses in small groups of patients. There are some bigger, experimental studies, but they’re rare.
You can check with NORML or ProCon, both of which have cannabis science links on their websites, to read MMJ studies. You won’t find any clinical trials from the United States among them. For a clinical trial to be accepted by the Food and Drug Administration, it has to include legal access to medication. There is no shortage of doctors wanting to study the effectiveness of MMJ against a variety of illnesses. The problem is with the legality.
Sue Sisley, a Scottsdale physician who asked the feds for permission to study the effectiveness of MMJ in treating PTSD, tried. Her study was quashed last year, even after the FDA approved the plan to treat 50 veterans with cannabis. It was nipped in the bud by the Drug Enforcement Administration, which denied her legal access to meds. (They control the only federally legal source for doctors.) No legal access, no study.
It’s interesting and very frustrating that MMJ naysayers and skeptics cite a lack of science on the medical use of cannabis, but in the nation with the best medical science in the world, doctors aren’t allowed to study the stuff.
It seems to me that if there isn’t enough science, we should add more science—and Humble could have done that by approving MMJ use for the aforementioned conditions. True enough, adding the four rejected conditions to the Arizona MMJ list wouldn’t result in the feds approving studies or clinical trials. Although doctors would then be free to study cannabis use among patients, the meds remain illegal under federal law. So the clinical, experimental science would still be hampered.
But putting cannabis in the hands of doctors and patients would deepen the pool of observational studies, which, according to Humble, “can be quite useful if they limit bias, are consistent, direct and control for confounding factors.” Doctors could build up evidence—real science—and publish it, as many physicians have done in other countries. It would add heft to the “weight of evidence,” which Humble called “super important” to making good policy decisions.
Medical use of cannabis is relatively new, but there is a growing body of evidence that it works. Humble fell flat when he had a chance to add to that body of evidence. So although I see why Humble rejected the petitions, I don’t like the circular-logic underpinnings.
I suspect these conditions will cross the Health Services director’s desk again. In fact, the state started taking petitions this week, so it might happen sooner than later.
Next time, Mr. Humble, let’s bring more science to the table, not less.
This article appears in Jul 26 – Aug 1, 2012.
i think humble should clarify to mmj cardholder how easy it is to still get busted even if you have the card and are within the legal limitatation of the statue why would someone with a mmj card need to beg to not be arrested for a pipe unless standrd protocol wasnt followed and for the slightest degree law which im being busted under makes no sense the law was written long ago and was intended for illegal users it sentences are for illegal user it makes no statement if your a cardholoder your sentence is the same as an illegal user. cause it in direct conflict with the statue if you have mmj in ur system ur guilty thats why i have the license so basicaly everyones guilty cause weed stays in ur system for weeks ther test cant tell if your positive from today or a week ago so lets prosecute anyways hey you can hire a lawyer and go bankrupt to fight it spare me i can barely afford gas thank you to certain officer that seem to at least follow the protocol i presnted my license to the officer he takes it with him into his cruser comes back and says ur under arrest never even called it in then also leaves it out of his report try proving any different .lets ee police verus poor people lets see who usually win whose the court believe talk about bullying at the highest level
Is this Jan Brewer logic or does MMJ require much more than say 1 ounce per use/possess?
Colorado has a ballot measure to legalize marjuana for recreational use in November of 2012.
Can we just legalize it already? In a country where you can consume as much alcohol as you want, smoke cigarettes, buy all manner of guns and ammo, etc. I don’t understand the illegalization of marijuana. It’s a fairly benign product – especially when compared to alcohol.
Why can’t I pursue happiness in my own fashion?
awesome response Karen
Ironically enough, I was kidnapped, taken to Mexico, beat, raped, and then wrapped from head to toe with duct tape & laid in what could have been my grave-all for transporting a ton of illegal bud, but loosing 200 lbs. I’ve been diagnosed as bi-polar with severe PTSD, so I take Lamotrigine & Lorazepam. Recently, I found myself feeling too sedated to actually wake up enough to stay out of bed, much less like actually going out in public. Feeling so anxious, lethargic, & worthless, I turned to ask a friend to simply help me get to the grocery store and actually shop. And for the first time since I nearly died for weed (& greed), I finally burned one with my friend- “pothead” before we went out. I was paranoid, but not scared for my life. We actually laughed & had fun as we bought far more than I needed. After dinner, I remembered that I had not taken the 3 mg of Lorazepam I usually take to shop at Walmart comfortably. Instead, we smoked half a joint. We discussed the many benefits mmj has over Rx meds, everything from how much the state’s AHCCCS program could save financially if mmj treatment replaced pharmacutical costs. If just us poor folk could legally grow and use mmj rather than all the expensive, synthetic compounds we are currently prescribed, thousands of dollars could be reallocated for so many other Arizonans that do not fall into the narrow categories to qualify for AHCCCS. Single men and women, both young & experienced, with no children, those that need treatment, surgeries, & transplants. Perhaps struggling individuals with illnesses and injuries that do not have basic medical coverage. Maybe even-dare I mention it-adults on AHCCCS could actually recieve basic dental coverage as well!?! Lol!
Anyways, I realize that Rx meds cause dependecy, especially my Lorazepam, but I volunteer to be among the first case studies to contribute to the scientific research needed to evaluate mmj’s effectiveness in treating mental, emotional, and behavioral health disorders. Just tell me where to sign up….