Governor Douglas Opposes Medical Marijuana

Author: Elizabeth Braunstein

On Feb. 26, Gov. James Douglas '72 announced his opposition to legalizing marijuana for medical purposes. Douglas said, "I have tremendous empathy for those who suffer from chronic pain and who feel they would benefit from medical marijuana. But I think it would be awkward to legalize a substance that could still be the subject of prosecution by federal authorities." The police and the Vermont attorney general's office have also expressed their disagreement with and concerns over the bill, which could benefit chronically ill patients suffering from diseases like AIDS, cancer and Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
The Senate medical marijuana bill has been passed by the Health and Welfare Committee as well as the Judiciary Committee, and will move to the Finance Committee shortly. The bill is largely based on the work of a task force of 13 people who spent the summer and fall of 2002 listening to testimony and looking at the processes and circumstances of the eight other states (Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington) that have enacted such a law. The House Bill, however, has moved more slowly through the committees, although such a bill was passed last session. The House and Senate bills are similar and outline the terms, usage and limitations of medical marijuana.
State Representative Betty Nuovo, D-Middlebury, responded to the Governor's statement, saying, "I think medical marijuana should be allowed under certain restrictions and safeguards. The federal government can arrest anyone who uses marijuana whether or not it is for medical use. The whole purpose of doing these bills is to get the federal government to allow it."
Katherine Perena, co-chair of the HIV Positive Public Policy Project, and member of the Senate taskforce, said, "I'm disappointed that fear of retribution from the federal government is driving Gov. Douglas' opinion as opposed to compassion for chronically ill people who experience severe pain and need this drug." She went on to say that the federal government has yet to arrest any patient or doctor for using or prescribing marijuana for medical purposes and that the bill itself is very specific in its conditions. Perena also noted that the evidence and experience from the eight other states demonstrates that such a law does not contribute to recreational marijuana use, a concern of many who oppose the bill.
"I'm hopeful that there will be enough support and that Gov. Douglas will change his mind and look at other states' examples. There's no need to reinvent the wheel. We're not the first state taking the first step here," said Kendall Farrell, Executive Director of Vermont Community for AIDS Research, Education and Services (CARES), an organization whose goal is to "improve the quality of life, create compassionate communities, and prevent the spread of HIV by working with people affected by HIV/AIDS as catalysts for social and individual change."
Although Douglas issued a statement of opposition, he refused to comment on whether or not he would veto a bill if it were passed by the legislature. His options would be to approve it, veto it or let it sit for five days until it automatically became a law.