It has been a turbulent last few weeks. Last month, one of the most impactful rollbacks of medicinal marijuana reform in recent history was effectuated in Montana. If you haven’t heard yet, the Supreme Court of Montana, on February 25th, ruled against medical marijuana patients and imposed new regulations prohibiting providers from supplying to more than three patients, prohibiting any form of advertising, and has increased pressure on doctors by stipulating that any doctor who chooses to prescribe medicinal marijuana to more than 25 patients will be under automatic state review. Many consider this ruling an aggressive attempt by lawmakers to regulate the legal medical marijuana industry out of existence.
Does this ruling mark an end to all grassroots dispensaries and cannabis business efforts in Montana? Lawmakers seeking to unfairly take this natural source of medicine away from constituents, and the industry opportunity for the rest of the state, sure seem to hope it will. Voters have the right to choose what kind of medicine helps them best. Lawmakers are operating not from the standpoint of a constituent’s inherent right to choose, but from an archaic stereotype of marijuana and from fear of losing control of a burgeoning industry.
Imagine all of the sick and terminal patients of Montana who use medical marijuana in order to alleviate pain, and ameliorate epilepsy (and other forms of seizures) in order to live a fuller life, patients who had the ability to choose natural forms of medicine instead of being forced to choose from a plethora of unnatural and chemically derived prescription pills. It disappoints us that our free-thinking state of Montana has demonstrated through this decision a submission to moral atrocity.
How will providers decide which three patients they will keep? Must they be forced to decide between the elderly woman with end-stage cancer or the veteran with amputated ligaments? This is taking medicine away from the sick and dying. It is up to us to make a change.
At Greener Pastures we work everyday to find the best legal methods to give our patients the ability to choose which kinds of medicine they need to survive. We actively talk with the authorities and police of Bozeman to stay above reproach, and have a team of lawyers who make every effort to ensure we follow all rules written into Montana law. But the ruling of last month doesn’t incentivize legal establishments to be on their best behavior, instead it stimulates underground dealings and black market transactions, which we do not condone and are offended that this is where the market is headed with such wrongfully aimed decisions.
We strive to develop an educated and moral audience within our patients so that all of us can role-model how faultless, responsible and patriotic cannabis establishments in Montana deserve to have the privilege to provide much needed medical care to respectable patients. A major component of your activism can be channeled by signing a petition that the Montana Cannabis Industry Association has put together. http://www.mtcia.org/sign/
Here is some information from MTCIA on extra steps you can take to help make a change.
“Start with the governor, then call your representatives (2) from your home district, and finally call the supreme court judges. Also the governor and some of the representatives are on twitter and facebook. Please respectfully tweet/post them your concerns as well as calling. Contact Gov Bullock at 406-444-3111, Twitter: @GovernorBullock To find your representative, use this site to enter your address then clink on your rep to show their contact information. http://leg.mt.gov/css/find%20a%20legislator.asp The Supreme court judges can be reached at 406-444-5490. We urge everyone to be respectful and polite.”
“Here are links to how your representatives voted on the original SB423. Remember a yes vote was a vote against us and a no vote was for us. Also note that many of the reps have changed since 2011, so you may need to educate your new rep on what you are calling about.
https://votesmart.org/bill/votes/34802#.VuGQ1uaMO-c
And
http://votesmart.org/bill/votes/34328?s=vote#.VuGQ9OaMO-c”