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As of Monday January 11th, the New Jersey Legislature approved a measure that would allow patients affected with chronic diseases, including cancer, AIDS, and multiple sclerosis, to have access to state-grown and regulated marijuana. Governor Jon Corzine, who is scheduled to leave office next Tuesday, has announced his intensions to sign the bill into law before his last day. Supporters say that within nine months, patients with prescriptions for medical marijuana should be able to obtain it at one of half a dozen locations across New Jersey.
Sufferers of chronic diseases rejoiced at the news. “The M.S. Society has shown that this drug will help slow the progression of my disease,” says Mr. Kwiatkowski, a New Jersey resident battling multiple sclerosis. “Why would I want to use anything else?”
Indeed, the benefits of medical marijuana have been confirmed by numerous doctors and scientists. Lester Grinspoon, MD, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, is just one of many who maintain that “for many patients, cannabis (marijuana) is more useful, less toxic, and less expensive than the conventional medicines prescribed for diverse syndromes and symptoms, including multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, migraine headaches, severe nausea and vomiting, convulsive disorders, the AIDS wasting syndrome, chronic pain, and many others.”
Kate Scannell, MD, Co-Director of the Northern California Ethics Department at Kaiser Permanente, observed repeatedly in her treatment of patients with cancer and AIDS a significant decrease in pain, nausea, fatigue and weight loss when they were prescribed medication to marijuana. For terminal patients, the results are incomparable. "Almost every sick and dying patient I've ever known who's tried medical marijuana experienced a kinder death,” Scannell concluded.
Nevertheless, there are still those who oppose the measure, claiming that there has not been sufficient testing to identify the long-term effects of the use of medical marijuana, putting the possible physical risks before the issue of the patients’ quality of life. Still others believe that the passing of the law sends the wrong message to young people. “There are children at age 15, 14 who are using drugs or thinking about using drugs,” said Keiko Warner, a school counselor in Millville, N. J. “And this is not going to help.”
But regardless of the continuing debate, the people of New Jersey have made their decision. Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, a Democrat from Princeton who sponsored the legislation, is confident that they made the right decision. “I truly believe this will become a model for other states,” he said after the vote. “It balances the compassionate use of medical marijuana while limiting the number of ailments that a physician can prescribe it for.”