Lisa Dames, a longtime legislative staffer and the mother of a 37-year old man who was diagnosed with cancer a year ago, told legislators Wednesday night that she did not believe Bill 343-33, the measure that would amend the “Joaquin ‘KC’ Concepcion II Compassionate Cannabis Use Act of 2013,” was patient focused.
Dames said the requirement for an advisory board would hinder the ability of the Department of Public Health and Social Services to implement the program, because of delays in board appointments and other factors. She recommended deleting the provision altogether in favor of DPHSS performing the board’s duties instead.
Dames was one of several stakeholders who testified during the latest public hearing on two bills meant to establish a medical marijuana program in Guam. The second measure, Bill 344-33, would allow for home cultivation of the plant. Her son’s illness led to some contact with California’s medical marijuana program and Dames described the services they utilized during that time as “patient focused.”
To streamline Guam’s program implementation, Dames recommended amending a provision that required DPHSS to promulgate rules for registry identification cards in accordance with the Administrative Adjudication Act (Triple A) process and suggested that the measure simply detail how the health department would issue those cards.
“This (process) would delay the implementation of this program. … We know that the Triple A process can take up to years sometimes to complete,” she said.
With the kind of considerations that need to take place before passing Bill 343, Dames said she believes allowing home cultivation is the best bet to quickly place medical marijuana in the hands of patients. She asked that Bill 344 be reported out and placed on the agenda for next legislative session.
Nearly two years have passed since voters approved Guam’s medical marijuana law in a referendum. After an arduous program rules creation and review process which eventually saw the proposed rules scrapped Bills 343 and 344 were introduced to answer community concerns with perceived lapses in the law. Their introduction was preempted by months worth of public discussion on the rules but as Dames and others testified yesterday, there are still changes that can be written into the bills’ language.
Women Grow Guam
Andrea Pellacani, the president of the advocacy group Women Grow Guam, said the medical marijuana program needs a commission that includes patient advocacy when commenting on the issue of the advisory board. She also stated that, despite larger community participation, the agencies and individuals that would be key to regulating the program have not been at the table. Pellacani said she had been trying to meet with the Guam Economic Development Authority to see how an economic impact study could be done for the program but has been unsuccessful so far.
“There are people who are experts on island and they should be here at the table,” Pellacani said.
James Gillan, the director of DPHSS, was not present during the hearing, but has stated before that his department would be unable to carry out the mandates in the bill with its current budget and staff. He reiterated those statements to the Post yesterday.
“I do believe that until there is a commitment to fully fund this operation, the DPHSS cannot take on this job. I really think some other agency or commission should be overseeing this program,” Gillan said.
Funding for the program also concerned Pellacani and Dames. Pellacani proffered a funding option which would involve borrowing from the Healthy Futures Fund. Bill 343 establishes a Compassionate Cannabis Use Fund for the program, but portions of that money can be used for other services. Dames suggested using all of the fund only for the medical marijuana program.
“It’s the only way the program will be sustainable,” Dames said.
Home cultivation
With regard to Bill 344, Gillan said there was no discussion on how home cultivation will take place, the reasons for the need for home cultivation, penalties for having more than the allowable number of plants, and other issues. He added that landlords should have the exclusive right to prohibit home cultivation on their property.
He said he also saw inconsistencies with Bill 343, having been adopted from the original medical marijuana law, but added that he would provide his own written testimony on this bill later.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker
Full Article: More Input Sought On Medical Marijuana
Author: John O’Connor
Contact: The Guam Daily Post
Photo Credit: Matt Weiss
Website: The Guam Daily Post
