Marijuana: the Forbidden Medicine
The medical use of marijuana should be approved by the federal government of the United States of America. Politics and personal bias have no place in the medical arts. Science, not prejudice, is the yardstick by which the efficacy of medical treatment is to be measured. the practitioner must be able to use all possible modalities in an effort to alleviate suffering. The government's stance on health care is slightly schizophrenic. In the early years of the AIDS epidemic, scant attention and even less resources were devoted to the crisis. Presently significant revenues are earmarked to fight the pandemic, but needle exchanges (a proven method to slow the disease's spread) are illegal. The government grows, tests, and on a small scale, distributes marihuana, but has stated that those physicians who even suggest it's use to the patients shall be prosecuted. Marijuana is a naturally occurring sap of a green leafy hemp plant. This plant can be found in almost any part of the world. Marijuana has been widely used in Asia, Asia Minor, and parts of Africa and is presently known worldwide. Referred to by other names such as hemp, pot, green, weed, cannabis, smoke, reefer, and ganga, it is used in many cultures. Some of it's cultural
Janet Reno said that physicians recommending hemp would be prevented from writing prescriptions, be excluded from Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, and even be prosecuted for a federal crime(San Gabriel Valley Tribune 6). Opponents of marijuana suggest it's deleterious effect on lung function. This is compassionate medical treatment held hostage to politics. Here is another example of why science, not politics should dictate federal drug policy. In their 1989 study, Meinch and colleagues found reproducible decrease in spasticity and ataxia related to Multiple Sclerosis with marijuana use. Who's medical judgment should patients seek, their doctors' or the highly trained medical specialists' at the Justice Department? The secretary of Health and Human Services, Donna Shalala, spoke to a press conference naming all the damage done to the body by cannabis use, admonishing how terrible the widespread use of marijuana would be. This paper has shown that marijuana possesses many proven therapeutic uses. Researchers Helper and Petus of UCLA ran a series of experiments and found a "statistically significant" decrease in intraocular pressure in 429 subjects treated with either marijuana or THC, 29 of which showed continued benefits during 94 days of treatment (596). This sort of revenue enhancement is not likely to be lost without a fight. Proponents of Marinol say it is a safe and effective medication and therefore, pot is not needed. The government's refusal to allow the voter's mandates is far from a laughing matter. Weed grown at home would be much cheaper. Grinspoon and Bakalar in their book describe several case studies of multiple sclerosis sufferers whose conditions improved while they smoked the drug, and deteriorated upon discontinuing of its use. Property seizure for illegal drug possession is another obstacle to legalization.
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