Residents Speak Out for Medicinal Marijuana
February 26, 2003
The Washington Post
Erin Hildebrandt's Crohn's disease and chronic migraines were so debilitating that the 32-year-old mother of five once worried that she would never be able to properly care for her children. She tried various powerful narcotics to deal with the pain, but found no relief. Now she worries that she could be arrested and her children taken away because she found a drug that works: pot.
With Maryland lawmakers considering legalizing the use of medical marijuana, the Washington County woman was among witnesses to testify yesterday before the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee. Cancer sufferers told lawmakers how the drug had helped them withstand chemotherapy. Del. Dan K. Morhaim (D-Baltimore County), a doctor, said that for some patients, marijuana is far superior to alternatives in treating nausea.
But opponents worried that legalizing the drug for medicinal purposes would send the wrong message to children and could potentially put the state in conflict with the federal government. The Hospice Network of Maryland, while supportive of the effort, said the bill would decriminalize the drug for medical use—but not for the doctors who prescribe it.
Nine states administer active medical marijuana programs. But the federal government recently prosecuted a California man who grew marijuana to be sold for medicinal uses under the auspices of that state's laws.
Maryland's bill has an ally in Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R). Spokesman Henry Fawell said the governor "supports the concept" but has not decided whether to support the bill.
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