While some Montanans have voiced their dissent with the recent decisions made by the Montana Supreme Court, not enough have spoken up to make clear that the public supports medical marijuana patient’s right to access their medicine. The Montana Supreme Court recently made a statement in response to the outcry against their drastic changes on the medical marijuana laws of Montana. More to save face and appease the public than anything else, the court ruled to postpone the application of the law changes until August 31, 2016. This heralds both good and bad news.
The Good News: Medical marijuana patients of Montana will have access to their medicine for at least four more months.
The Bad News: The Montana Supreme Court still intends to restrict how medical patients get cannabis after August. This essentially means that they will regulate local dispensaries out of business, thus making it harder for patients to access, and unfortunately, making the black market venues of buying marijuana more attractive to constituents. Overall, this ruling makes it more difficult for the sick and legally registered to have an easy, safe, and law-abiding way to access their medicine.
After August, medical marijuana providers will be forced to shut their doors to patients, and we will all have to band together to fight the injustice brought on by a state government more concerned with outdated stereotypes of cannabis, than facing reality and actually serving the real needs of constituents who prefer natural medicine to chemically derived prescription pill ones.
There is, however, a silver lining; we will all have the opportunity to vote on I-182. I-182 is a initiative in November for Montana constituents to vote on medical marijuana and what level patients will be able to access this medicine. This is our chance to exercise our voice as tax paying, law abiding citizens, and either way it offers us the chance to completely reformat the rules on medical marijuana in Montana, making this medicine accessible to those who need it, and allow providers to continue to grow plants for those who cannot grow their own. The law would also make it possible for testing laboratories to legally test cannabis for molds and toxins that might be harmful to humans.
Now is the time to start joining together to fight for I-182, and to show the government and Supreme Court of Montana that the citizens of this great state believe in the right to choose their own medicine.