Opinion -Latrisha Matson
This bill, if it passes the Senate Floor, will allow Speciality Courts like Drug Court, Veterans Court, and Juvenile Court Judges to decide if a patient can use Medical Cannabis during their attendence in the program. Speciality courts are funded by the Bureau of Justice Association amongst other federally funded programs. Since Cannabis is STILL a schedule 1 substance , patients are not supposed to attend these programs or quit using Medical cannabis as a treatment.
After months of research and communication with lawmakers we have found a lot of inconsistencies in these bills.
Speciality courts are all over the U.S. and almost all 50 states allow medical cannabis of some kind.
In Pennsylvania, Tyler Cordeiro, a 24-year-old Bucks County man, was denied addiction treatment funding through a state program Tyler made the choice to attend drug court without his Medical Cannabis Treatment. Tyler had been using Medical Cannabis to treat his addiction. His mother told me that he was clean for almost 11 months which was the longest recovery time he has achieved. Long enough to walk her down the isle. Tyler later on lost his life to an overdose.
The MATS program is a recovery method program that utilizes Methadone and Suboxone for treatment. Both treatments act like or are a different form of opiate. Both can become addictive.
People all over the country are using Cannabis as a treatment for their opioid use disorders. The success rate in recovery has been proven over and over.
On January 1st, 2020 the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services released a statement specifying that patients can attend drug court, they just can't pay for their cannabis. This is a default statement for every speciality court in the country.
The Michigan Senate Reform Committee passed a bill to the floor that will allow a judge to choose if a patient can continue treatment that a physician recommended.
Every one of the committee members received this information, A written testimony from Susan Ousterman, Tyler's mother, a copy of the announcement of the change, the changes made on SAMSHAs site, the email between MDHHS and myself clarifying the change, and they still passed it.
Judges are not doctors.
Medical Cannabis helps.
Stigma still exist.
The War on Drugs is no longer a war on all drugs, just some drugs. It's a war on your drugs. Your choice.
Aric Nesbitt (R) Chair Lana Theis (R) Majority Vice Chair Ruth Johnson (R) Dan Lauwers (R) Curtis VanderWall (R) Dale Zorn (R). Mark Huizenga (R). Jeremy Moss (D) Minority. Vice Chair Dayna Polehanki (D). Paul Wojno (D)
Keep an eye out for the list of pro cannabis candidates and leadership of Michigan.
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