Medical Marijuana: What is a sixty(60) day supply?

There's the rub, and one-way mmj-hostile officialdom comes after us. There is no statutory amount. I guess it makes sense, since there is no statutory amount for prescription codeine, demerol, or oxycontin.

Seems sensible, given the range of mj potency, variety of medical needs, and choice of delivery modes (e.g. brownies & soup use a lot more pot than vaporizers, or joints). Seems like the sort of question which should be answered by patient/doctor/titration interfaces.

Logic notwithstanding, the Federal Government (same one, which says mj has no medical use) has its answer. While waiting for its remaining 8 patients to die, the Fed G. continues to supply its patients with about an lb., to 1&1/2 lbs, of finely manicured, rolled joints (from its famous, up-to-date pot farm), every sixty days:

[77]	From 1978 to 1992, the federal government conducted its own medical marijuana program. Today, the government continues to individuals who participated in this program with marijuana under its Compassionate Care program; they are among the few people in the country who can use the drug legally. Together with the American Public Health Association and other health care and medical organizations, individuals in this group filed an amicus brief supporting the plaintiffs. The following are their personal statements, taken from that brief.
[78]	Barbara M. Douglass was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1988 at the age of 22. In 1991, Ms. Douglass began receiving herbal cannabis from the United States government upon the advice and assistance of her physician. Prior to this date, Ms. Douglass had never tried cannabis. Each month, the government provides her physician with one can containing three hundred cannabis cigarettes, each weighing 7/10 oz. Ms. Douglass and her physician report that herbal cannabis provides relief from pain and spasms and stimulates her appetite to counteract the effects of wasting syndrome from which she suffered prior to using cannabis. Ms. Douglass has never experienced any adverse side effects from marijuana. Without cannabis, Ms. Douglass believes she would not be alive today.
[79]	George Lee McMahon was born July 22, 1950, with Nail Patella Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes severe pain, nausea and muscle spasms. Mr. McMahon tried conventional medications to treat his symptoms, but found the side effects of these medications to be intolerable. In the early 1980s, Mr. McMahon discovered that herbal cannabis alleviated his pain, nausea and spasms, stimulated his appetite and allowed him to sleep through the night. In 1988, Mr. McMahon informed his physician that he was successfully self-medicating with cannabis. His physician ordered him to cease his cannabis use and return to prescription medications. Over the following six months, Mr. McMahon's health progressively degenerated. Mr. McMahon's physician then helped Mr. McMahon apply to the federal government's Compassionate Care IND Program. In March 1990, Mr. McMahon was accepted into the program and for the past decade has received 300 cannabis cigarettes each month from the United States government. Mr. McMahon and his physician believe that without cannabis Mr. McMahon would not be alive today.
[80]	Elvy Musikka was diagnosed with glaucoma in 1975 at the age of 36. She tried conventional medications to treat her condition, but could not tolerate them. Reluctantly, in 1976, she decided to try herbal cannabis at the advice of her physician. The cannabis provided her immediate relief, substantially lowering her intraocular pressure as no other medication had, with few side effects. Ms. Musikka ingests cannabis by smoking it, as well as eating it in baked goods and olive oil. Fearful of the legal consequences of smoking cannabis, Ms. Musikka underwent several risky surgeries in an attempt to correct her condition, but they were unsuccessful and left her blind in one eye. In 1988, Ms. Musikka was arrested in Florida and charged with cannabis possession. She challenged her conviction in the Florida Supreme Court, where she prevailed, becoming the first person in that state to establish a medical necessity defense for cannabis. Shortly thereafter, the federal government enrolled Ms. Musikka in its medical cannabis program and has provided her with one and one-half pounds of herbal cannabis on a quarterly basis ever since. Ms. Musikka and her physician believe that if she were deprived of cannabis she would go blind.
[81]	Irvin Henry Rosenfeld was diagnosed at age 10 with multiple congenital cartilaginous exostosis, a disease causing the continuous growth of bone tumors, and the generation of new tumors, on ends of most of the long bones in his body. He was told he would not survive into adulthood. In an attempt to treat the painful symptoms of this disease, he was prescribed high doses of opioid analgesics, muscle relaxants and anti-inflammatory medications, which he took on a daily basis, but which had minimal efficacy and produced debilitating side effects. In 1971, Mr. Rosenfeld began using smoked herbal cannabis with the approval and under the supervision of a team of physicians. Mr. Rosenfeld found the cannabis highly efficacious in alleviating pain, reducing swelling, relaxing muscles and veins that surround the bone tumors, and preventing hemorrhaging. In 1982, the United States government, operating under the Compassionate Care IND Program, at the request of his physicians, began supplying Mr. Rosenfeld with herbal cannabis to treat his condition. For the past 19 years, the government has consistently provided him with a 75-day of herbal cannabis, totaling 33 ounces per shipment. Mr. Rosenfeld smokes 12 marijuana cigarettes a day to control the symptoms of his disease. In the 30 years that Mr. Rosenfeld has used herbal cannabis as a medicine, he has experienced no adverse side effects (including no "high"), has been able to discontinue his prescription medications, and has worked successfully for the past 13 years as a stockbroker handling multi-million dollar accounts. Mr. Rosenfeld and his physicians believe that but for herbal cannabis, Mr. Rosenfeld might not be alive, or, at the very least, would be bed-ridden. (full text of Conant, below) http://www.legaljoint.net/mmj/mmj_physicians/conant_case.asp Of course, if you're in Judge Baker's territory (Ferry, Stevens, Pend O'Reille Counties), you'd best be prepared to smoke your roots, dirt, and leaves, lest you be imprisoned for more than a "sixty day" of stems, leaves, and roots. Northeastern Washington is, reputedly, not mmj friendly: "And when you think you have a medical reason to do it--I"m always cynical about that if that"s happening--because really that defense, that Medical Marijuana defense--has some serious flaws with it from a legal standpoint, where you are really hanging out if you're giving--if you're continuing to use medical marijuana, let alone grow it for medical purposes." (VRP 5/1/06, p. 11). (Emphasis added). "...this medical marijuana defense is a very--it's almost a sham for people. (Emphasis added). (VRP 5/10/06, p. 12). Judge Baker STATE OF WASHINGTON Cause No. 05-1-00158-0 COA Cause No.252281 GLENN ELLIOTT ETCHART. On the other hand, Washington State's Appellate Div. III, has no apparent problem with 34 (mature) plants: Police seized 34 growing marijuana plants..... We conclude that the defendant satisfied the requirements of a qualifying patient under the Medical Marijuana Act. He presented the valid documentation necessary under the Act when required. We therefore reverse his conviction and dismiss the prosecution. 24778-3 Title of Case: State of Washington v. Loren Ronald Hanson Court of Appeals Division III (Click here for full text) In Washington's Northern Counties (Ferry, Stevens, Pende O'Reille), you would best be prepared to smoke your roots and stems (or at least count them, as part of your "sixty day" ): "Inasmuch as all alleged marijuana seized--including roots, leaves, and stems, and not just flowers ("bud")--is relevant to the issue of whether the affirmative marijuana defense has been established, the defendants' motion to dismiss is DENIED... Even if the defendants prefer to use the "bud" over the leaves, they were in possession of all the marijuana found here: stems, roots, seeds, leaves and "bud". The roots and seeds are "marijuana", as are the leaves, stems and "bud"." Finally, be forewarned (at least in our Northern counties): If local law enforcement charges manufacture, rather than possession, you may waste away in prison, over one plant no matter how dire your medical circumstances: "It should be further noted that nothing in Initiative Measure No. 692 (Chapter 69.51A R.C.W.) makes it legal to manufacture marijuana. It is only the use and possession of not more than a sixty day of medically necessary marijuana that triggers the protections of Initiative Measure No. 692." Click here for full text of Ackerson Finally, remember this, in Washington: there is no license for the sick and dying to possess medical marijuana. There is only an affirmative defense, which can generally be raised, only, after the damage has been done (Click here for Alison's warning). Although the people have voted to drag the sick and dying off the battlefield of the War on Drugs, law enforcement, and the judiciary, have been slow to follow. The Federal Government has moved backwards, and recognizes no affirmative defense. The best weapon, of hostile forces, is to argue about sixty day . When in doubt, be conservative, and secretive. pks (5/6/07)