Marijuana: Should it be Legalized for Medicinal Use?

Though some think that marijuana is just for pot heads, a group of doctors, nurses, medical organizations and patients believe that if legalized, marijuana could be effective in treating symptoms for many seriously ill patients. People suffering from multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS, cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn's disease and chronic pain report that marijuana eases their symptoms. The Compassionate Care Act, a bill to legalize the use of marijuana for the treatment of a specified group of illnesses is now being considered by the NYS Assembly. Assemblywoman Amy Paulin held a press conference on Friday March 14 to support the bill and invited those who would benefit from legalized marijuana to tell their stories.

"The medical benefits that can be derived from marijuana are far too great to ignore any longer," Paulin said. "There are so many people suffering from a variety of diseases where medical marijuana would make a huge difference in their quality of life. We need to pass this legislation to help the thousands of patients that need specific strains of marijuana, such as children with Dravet's Syndrome."

According to New York Physicians for Compassionate Care a growing body of scientific evidence has demonstrated that marijuana is effective in controlling chronic pain, alleviating nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, treating wasting syndrome associated with HIV/AIDS, controlling muscle spasms due to multiple sclerosis and managing epilepsy.

Scarsdale's Dalia Kessaci attended the press conference with her 3-year old daughter Mellina to tell the group why she is passionate about the passage of the legislation. Mellina suffers from a severe form of epilepsy that is resistant to conventional drug treatment. She can have as many as 100 seizures a week. The anti-seizure drugs caused a different kind of seizure, severely delaying her development. Dalia learned that parents of children with epilepsy in Colorado have given their kids oil of cannabis to control the seizures and it has proven to be safe, effective and have few side effects.

The Hauser family of Suffern was also on hand with their nine year-old daughter Amanda, who is able to go to school and after school activities, but suffers from a seizure disorder called Dravet's syndrome. When asked what it feels like to have a seizure, Amanda replied, "it goes black." Her parents are not willing to purchase drugs illegally and attended the press conference to support the passage of this legislation. Her mother Maryanne said,"My family is faced with a choice no one should have to make – watch our child suffer needlessly or contemplate uprooting our family and moving to one of the 20 states where medical marijuana is legal."

We also met Dawn Carney of Mount Vernon who is living with HIV/AIDS. She showed us pictures of herself before her drugs started to work. She was wasting away and smoking marijuana helped to improve her appetite. She said, "It is wrong that New Yorkers living with serious and life-threatening conditions have to break the law to use a medication that can relieve their symptoms.

Learn more at www.compassionatecareny.org.