US NEWS
Utah Lawmakers Fight to Keep Recreational Cannabis Illegal Wednesday Jones
Not surprisingly, Utah lawmakers are still standing strong in their fight to keep recreational cannabis illegal while going over the state’s medical marijuana program.
was Sen. Allen Christensen: “You know how strongly opposed I am to recreational (marijuana), I could never do anything, in my mind, that would lead to any kind of stepping stone toward recreation.” As a pharmacist, Vickers also said that “designing a functional ca n n a b i s p rog ra m w a s l i ke ‘tiptoeing through a minefield’ to strike the right balance between control and flexibility.”
The bill, known as SB121, received a unanimous vote in the Senate, with Sen. Christensen saying he • Remove a mandate that raw flower only supported it because of its must be sold in a blister pack. sponsor. “If you weren’t my trusted pharmacist, I would be a ‘no’ vote • Increase the number of cannabis on this. But I’m going to take a leap recommendations qualified medical of faith and support you.” providers can issue — from 175 to 275 for general practitioners and Patients and advocates like Nathan from 300 to 600 for specialists. Kizerian (whose wife used cannabis while dying of colon cancer) • Create an expungement option are fighting this bill. Kizerian’s for patients if they have a past objections to the bill include “60 marijuana conviction that resulted day expiration for raw flower,” from possession of cannabis in a which means patients could never form that would now be legal. legally leave the house with expired flower, and concerns over patient That said, Evan Vickers, Senate privacy/data for those who do use Majority Leader, Utah, reassured medicinal cannabis. t h a t t h e sta te i s n ow h e re near legalizing marijuana for “All I can do is attack this program, recreational use, and went as far as and I’m doing that on social media.” to assure a colleague in the state’s Senate Health and Human Services The bill is expected to launch in full Committee, whom I’m guessing in March. EdiblesList.com I EdiblesMagazine.com
Edibles Magazine™ Issue 62
The bill includes the following:
51
