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Deal emerges on medical marijuana

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Illinois

* This is good news…

Illinois Deputy House Majority Leader Lou Lang (D-Skokie) today announced an agreement with Governor Bruce Rauner over a Medical Marijuana pilot project expansion.

Lang issued the following statement on Senate Bill 10:

“Governor Rauner and House Minority Leader Jim Durkin deserve credit for their willingness and commitment to reform and extend Illinois’ medical marijuana program. I want to thank them for their cooperation to find a bi-partisan legislative compromise on improving a program designed to ease the pain and suffering of seriously ill individuals, including children.”

The chief provisions of the legislation are:

1. Pilot Program extended to July 1, 2020.

2. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) and terminal illness added as qualifying medical conditions.

3. Patient and caregiver cards valid for three years, instead of one.

4. Upon renewal of patient and caregiver cards, no fingerprinting is required.

5. Doctors will no longer have to RECOMMEND cannabis, but will simply certify that there is a bona fide Doctor-Patient relationship and that the patient has a qualifying condition.

6. Minors who are patients may have two caregivers.

7. The Medical Cannabis Advisory Board will be reconstituted, and a new procedure created for accepting patient petitions for the addition of new conditions to the program.

Glad to see the governor working cooperatively on this.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:37 pm

Comments

This makes sense and glad to see they could actually work together. Which begs question: what happened?

Comment by DuPage Saint Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:40 pm
I suggested that this was one that he would agree to and sign, and I’m thrilled that this is happening. Adding PTSD is huge. The research coming from other places is also a big help as more and more legit studies can be done under the aegis of it being a legal program. It’s a good start! Prayers and relief to people this can help immediately. Hopefully, childhood epilepsy can be added to this list soon with some case studies and research from elsewhere. Kudos all around on this.

Comment by A guy Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:49 pm
Glad this went through, there are literally tens of thousands of people in IL who will directly benefit from this.

Comment by frisbee Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:49 pm
excellent! maybe everyone can chill out.

Comment by Amalia Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:51 pm
== Which begs question: what happened?==

They personally tested the underlying premise of the legislation before negotiating?

Comment by fka Lester Holt's Mustache Friday, May 27, 16 @ 3:52 pm
At the rate we are going, all Illinois residents will soon be able to claim PTSD from the budget process, effectively legalizing pot for all. Very sneaky.

Comment by enoughalready Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:03 pm
Pass me a slice of pizza.

Comment by Saluki Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:04 pm
While this bill is much better then sb 0346 amendment 2 I still would prefer to see this program IMPROVED before ww extend it.

Yes well have more patients but the system is still inherited flawed.

Small businesses are still not allowed to participate.

Patients are still not allowed to grow there own medicine.

Patients still are limited to shopping at 1 dispendary.

Felons still aren’t allowed access to medicine.

Etx etc etc lol

My take on this is the cannabis businesses in illinois have done a great job lobbying to protect there interest$$$$$$

Comment by Bpepe420 Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:06 pm
Finally. Glad to see this get done.

Comment by Jorge Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:06 pm
When will it go into effect ? Severe PTSD army medic here ???

Comment by Anonymous Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:09 pm
===Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) and terminal illness added as qualifying medical conditions.===

The first scientific for the use of medical marijuana to treat PTSD was approved the end of April. Results may not be published until 2019. I wonder what the results of the study will be?

Comment by Hit or Miss Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:16 pm
— My take on this is the cannabis businesses in illinois have done a great job lobbying to protect there interest$$$$$$ —

What about the Funyuns lobby?

Comment by Ron Burgundy Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:18 pm
@hit or miss. absolutely right. studies first, expansion second. Once a study says its effective, by all means. until then, this is medicine by sympathy. and rich, I know you believe MJ is harmless and anecdotally works, but science says that’s not universally true. don’t be a science denier! lol

Comment by Anonymous Friday, May 27, 16 @ 4:40 pm
When does all this take effect? Will I need another background check and get fingerprinted again this year to renew???

Comment by D Stiver Friday, May 27, 16 @ 5:06 pm
Thank God!
I suffer from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (on the list of illnesses), yet my pain management doctor would NOT prescribe medical marijuana for me. Why? She said it was because there is no scientific basis that it relieves pain. But in reality I believe it’s because she works for a large hospital which was recently purchased by a HUGE medical corporation and she was under pressure, or mandate, not to prescribe to her patients. I have read that many other Illinois patients have been experiencing the same treatments from their own corporately-owned doctors. I suspect that this is why the doctor’s responsibility was modified with the passing of this bill, leaving it up to the patient to decide if medical marijuana can help their suffering. As it should have been from the beginning of this program.

Now I will finally be able to obtain real pain relief…legally! 😀

Comment by KWP Wednesday, Jun 1, 16 @ 10:52 pm