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By Hannah Meisel
* The State Journal-Register is reporting that Sen. Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) will soon release SB 336, a medical marijuana expansion bill, to Gov. Rauner. The bill is aimed at reducing reliance on opioids and instead prescribing certain patients with chronic pain medical marijuana instead.
The legislation, which passed with bipartisan support and supermajorities in the Illinois House and Senate, soon will be sent to the Republican governor’s desk, said Sen. Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, sponsor of Senate Bill 336.
Medical marijuana may not help every pain patient avoid an opioid addiction that can lead to misuse of legal prescription drugs or illegal drugs such as heroin, Harmon said.
But he said allowing people who have been or could be prescribed an opioid to instead use marijuana is worth a try, based on anecdotal reports and studies that show a reduction in opioid-related fatalities and opioid prescriptions in states that allow the use of marijuana for medical or recreational purposes.
“I’m not saying there’s no need for opioids,” Harmon said last week. “But we’d like to give people an off ramp. People die from opioid overdoses. They don’t die from cannabis overdoses. I’ll take that tradeoff any day.”
If approved, the legislation could increase enrollment in the program — currently serving about 38,000 patients — by eightfold or more, based on estimates.
It’s unclear what Rauner thinks of the bill. A Rauner spokeswoman didn’t respond to a request for comment, and Harmon said Rauner is “not a fan” of the medical marijuana pilot program, which was set in motion under Rauner’s predecessor, Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat.
Rauner’s administration is opposing a legal effort to add “intractable pain” to the state’s list of about 40 qualifying conditions for people wanting to enroll in the medical cannabis program.
And Illinois, unlike many states with programs, doesn’t allow patients to legally buy marijuana if they have “chronic pain” but not one of the other qualifying conditions such as cancer, AIDS, fibromyalgia, seizures or spinal cord injuries, Harmon said.
* As of Monday afternoon, the bill has still not been sent to the governor.
Related…
* Post-Dispatch: “St. Louis circuit attorney’s office will dismiss some smaller marijuana possession cases”
* BND Editorial Board: “St. Louis letting marijuana possession slide. Illinois? Stay tuned.”
* Sunday Spin: “Medical Marijuana could be the cure for the opioid epidemic”
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 4:47 pm
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–The legislation, which passed with bipartisan support and supermajorities in the Illinois House and Senate,–
Chance here for Rauner to mitigate his Reefer Madness record.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:06 pm
Rauner is “Not a fan” of the marijuana pilot program.
To be fair, I don’t think Rauner is a fan of being re-elected. Isn’t pro marijuana movement supported by like near 70% of voters.
I mean it’s reduced opiate deaths in other states so why wouldn’t it work here. I’m thinking Rauner simply doesn’t care about common sense and instead making some investors in pharmaceuticals happy.
Comment by Anon Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:15 pm
Anon 5:15, where’s the data on reducing opiate deaths in other states? I would like to read it. You might also share a copy with Sen. Harmon, as he has only “anecdotal” data.
Comment by Arthur Andersen Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:19 pm
It is ridicules that this is even being debated. Cannabis is safer than caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, sugar, steaks, cheeseburgers. Just look at the national news, the prohibition on cannabis is crumbling.
Comment by Illinois Resident Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:24 pm
Caffeine, really? But I agree on the rest.
Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:34 pm
Da Big Bad Wolf - You can fatally OD on caffeine. You cannot on cannabis.
Comment by Illinois Resident Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:41 pm
AA: From JAMA:
“States with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8% lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate…compared with states without medical cannabis laws. Examination of the association between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality in each year after implementation of the law showed that such laws were associated with a lower rate of overdose mortality that generally strengthened over time”
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1898878
Comment by Ali Nagib Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 5:55 pm
Annual world wide cannabis over dose deaths per year = 0.
Comment by Illinois Resident Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 6:02 pm
Ali, from your JAMA article:
“Conclusion: Further analysis is required….”
Thanks for playing.
Comment by Arthur Andersen Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 6:33 pm
Arthur Andersen
If that’s all you got out of that very informational article, well…
Comment by dray Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 6:55 pm
AA its easy to wordsmith when ones mind is mind up
Comment by Anon Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 6:56 pm
So you’re saying that scientists doing a study didn’t just say “That’s it, we proved it, no further studies are needed!”? What kind of science do they think they’re practicing?
http://www.nber.org/papers/w21345
Comment by Ali Nagib Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 7:39 pm
Sorry, clicked send too soon, there are more!
From NBER:
“Using both standard differences-in-differences models as well as synthetic control models, we find that states permitting medical marijuana dispensaries experience a relative decrease in both opioid addictions and opioid overdose deaths compared to states that do not.”
“Among study participants, medical cannabis use was associated with a 64% decrease in opioid use (n = 118), decreased number and side effects of medications, and an improved quality of life (45%). This study suggests that many CP patients are essentially substituting medical cannabis for opioids and other medications for CP treatment, and finding the benefit and side effect profile of cannabis to be greater than these other classes of medications.”
https://www.jpain.org/article/S1526-5900(16)00567-8/abstract?code=yjpai-site
Care to keep playing? Or how about a nice game of chess?
Comment by Ali Nagib Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 7:41 pm
AA - Fortunately the reefer madness folks are now firmly in the minority opinion on cannabis. It will be legal in Illinois no later than 2020.
Comment by Illinois Resident Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 8:06 pm
I am glad to read that all of Illinois’ woes will be over after legalization. And hopefully we will be able to shut down a few prisons in our state, saving tens of millions of dollars. I wonder which prisons will be shuttered?
Comment by BlueDogDem Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 8:24 pm
–I am glad to read that all of Illinois’ woes will be over after legalization.–
It’s a good start.
Comment by Illinois Resident Monday, Jun 18, 18 @ 8:36 pm
Safer than steaks? Hold your horses there. I agree it’s nothing compared to heroin/cocaine/meth, etc., but it can be addictive and just from the limited data available, can have negative side effects. Those side effects don’t include death, which is a plus, but don’t go too far the other way and tell people it has absolutely no ill effects no matter who uses it or how much they use.
Comment by Perrid Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 5:51 am
Illinois Resident, OK then. If excessive use causes death I guess we have to put water on your list.
Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 6:21 am
Weed is much safer than Dihydrogenated Oxygen, everyone that invests that eventually dies. /s
Comment by Gruntled University Employee Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 7:31 am
Why would anyone support taking deadly opioids when marijuana is an alternative?
Comment by Grandson of Man Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 7:45 am
–Da Big Bad Wolf–
The LD 50 (median lethal dose) in humans is between 150 and 200 milligrams per kg. So a 75kg man (165lb) could be killed by about 11 grams of caffeine.
While this is really hard to do with coffee (80-100 cups), it could easily happen with caffeine powder used in caffeine pills and nutritional supplements.
Comment by TrumpsSmallHands Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 8:48 am
Perrid - Heart disease kills 610,000 people in the US per year. Poor diet is a contributing factor, IE lots of red meat.
Comment by Illinois Resident Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 10:29 am
Da Big Bad Wolf - Yes, water is more dangerous then cannabis for an OD and drowning perspective.
Comment by Illinois Resident Tuesday, Jun 19, 18 @ 10:30 am