1) National Pain Strategy Endorsement

Do you believe all Canadian children deserve access to the best pain care?
If you require surgery, do you want your post-operative pain treated properly?
If you suffer a painful injury requiring treatment in an emergency department, do you want to be sure that your pain will be properly assessed and treated?
Do you want your doctor or healthcare professional to be at least as well-educated in treating pain as a veterinarian is?

If you answered YES to any of these questions endorse the National Pain Strategy.

CAMCD is encouraging patients across the country to endorse the National Pain Strategy. The Canadian Pain Society (CPS) and the Canadian Pain Coalition (CPC), along with their partner organizations will be hosting the 2012 Canadian Pain Summit later this month in Ottawa and will be presenting the National Pain Strategy for final consideration. This is a great opportunity for a diverse range of organizations to work together and put chronic pain treatments on the national agenda.

To endorse the strategy, click here:

The National Pain Strategy recently was covered in the Globe and Mail. To read the article, click here:

2) BC Supreme Court Ruling Finds MMAR Unconstitutional

Friday April 14 2012

Vancouver, British Columbia

The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries (CAMCD) applauds today’s BC Supreme Court decision finding Health Canada’s Marihuana Medical Access Program (MMAP) to be unconstitutional. “This decision is great news for patients and their providers,” said Adam Greenblatt, a CAMCD Director. “Cannabis foods and resins are the cornerstone of many patients’ medical treatment.”

The defendant, Owen Smith, the head baker for Victoria’s Cannabis Buyer’s Club of Canada, was charged with possession of THC for the purposes of trafficking and possession of cannabis. In December 2009 Mr. Smith was arrested in a downtown apartment while baking cookies infused with medical cannabis which are used as treatment for patients suffering from chronic and critical conditions who cannot or choose not to inhale or otherwise use dried cannabis.

BC Supreme Court Justice Johnston found that the “artificial restriction” on “dried” marijuana in the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations breaches Section 7 of the Charter of Rights. “The remedy for this breach is to remove the word ‘dried’ where it appears in the medical marijuana access regulations,” said Johnston.

Medical cannabis dispensaries (aka ‘compassion clubs’) currently serve over 30,000 patients across Canada. Since 1996, dispensaries have been providing patients with safe access to a wide variety of medical cannabis products including baked goods, tinctures and resins.

Last June, Health Canada announced an overhaul to the MMAP in response to concerns raised by a number of stakeholders. Health Canada has stated it intends to remove itself as a distributor and adopt a more traditional regulatory capacity in the marketplace. CAMCD has been involved in constructive consultations with Health Canada officials around these proposed reforms.

CAMCD is a not-for-profit corporation established to promote a regulated community-based approach to medical cannabis access, and to support medical cannabis dispensaries in the provision of high quality patient care across Canada.

3) A Taste for Life Fundraiser

A Taste for Life is a fundraiser for HIV/AIDS service organizations across the country, held on April 25th.

Help fight HIV/AIDS just by dining out!

Make a dinner reservation;
Have a great evening out;
The restaurant will donate 25% of your bill to support the HIV/AIDS organization in your community!

Helping a great cause has never been so easy – or tasted so good!

It’s one night only – get a group together and book early!

For more information and to find participating restaurants, please visit: http://www.atasteforlife.org/

4) HEC Montréal Guest Lecture

CAMCD Director Adam Greenblatt gave a guest lecture to an MBA class at one of Québec’s leading business schools, HEC Montréal. Mr. Greenblatt spoke at length about the mechanics of the emerging medical cannabis sector, as well as the obstacles he has faced as an activist and entrepreneur. It was a unique opportunity and a promising sign of how medical cannabis is being mainstreamed and integrated into the Canadian economy.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries (CAMCD) applauds today’s BC Supreme Court decision finding Health Canada’s Marihuana Medical Access Program (MMAP) to be unconstitutional. “This decision is great news for patients and their providers,” said Adam Greenblatt, a CAMCD Director. “Cannabis foods and resins are the cornerstone of many patients’ medical treatment.”

The defendant, Owen Smith, the head baker for Victoria’s Cannabis Buyer’s Club of Canada, was charged with possession of THC for the purposes of trafficking and possession of cannabis. In December 2009 Mr. Smith was arrested in a downtown apartment while baking cookies infused with medical cannabis which are used as treatment for patients suffering from chronic and critical conditions who cannot or choose not to inhale or otherwise use dried cannabis.

BC Supreme Court Justice Johnston found that the “artificial restriction” on “dried” marijuana in the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations breaches Section 7 of the Charter of Rights. “The remedy for this breach is to remove the word ‘dried’ where it appears in the medical marijuana access regulations,” said Johnston.

Medical cannabis dispensaries (aka ‘compassion clubs’) currently serve over 30,000 patients across Canada. Since 1996, dispensaries have been providing patients with safe access to a wide variety of medical cannabis products including baked goods, tinctures and resins.

Last June, Health Canada announced an overhaul to the MMAP in response to concerns raised by a number of stakeholders. Health Canada has stated it intends to remove itself as a distributor and adopt a more traditional regulatory capacity in the marketplace. CAMCD has been involved in constructive consultations with Health Canada officials around these proposed reforms.

CAMCD is a not-for-profit corporation established to promote a regulated community-based approach to medical cannabis access, and to support medical cannabis dispensaries in the provision of high quality patient care across Canada.

-30-

Media:

Adam Greenblatt
514-830-1331

1) Health Canada Meets with Organizations Interested in Becoming LCPs

In February, Health Canada hosted meetings in Victoria and Ottawa for organizations and individuals who had previously expressed interest in applying for Licensed Commercial Producer (LCP) status. The meetings focused on specific technical details of the manufacturing and packaging of medical cannabis, with the aim to inform Health Canada representatives and aid them in developing reforms to the Marihuana Medical Access Program (MMAP). Both meetings were well attended by a diverse range of organizations. CAMCD applauds Health Canada for inviting the expertise that already exists within the medical cannabis sector and considering this input when drafting reforms to the MMAP.

CAMCD’s directors have been able to effectively provide input through these meetings regarding regulations around LCPs that would allow dispensaries to be included.

There is an opportunity for patients under the proposed reformed MMAP to form not-for-profits or co-operatives and apply for LCP status. The proposal does not preclude patients from forming collectives and producing their medicine in a common setting. Patients concerned about the removal of the Personal Production Licenses (PPLs) can consider this option as a stop gap measure to address affordability and other access issues.

2) Medical Cannabis: Standards, Engagement, Evaluation and Dissemination (SEED)” project

The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries, Canadians for Safe Access, and researchers from University of British Columbia are extremely pleased to announce the launch of the “Medical Cannabis: Standards, Engagement, Evaluation and Dissemination (SEED)” project, funded by a 3 year grant from the Peter Wall Solutions Initiative.[1] The Peter Wall Solutions Initiative focuses on practical and innovative solutions to societal problems.

“Certification of dispensaries based on collaboratively developed standards will help ensure product safety, improve patient education and support strategies that promote the safe and effective use of medical cannabis” said Rielle Capler (Co-PI), currently a doctoral student at UBC and co-founder of CAMCD. “The self-regulation of dispensaries is a necessary step to integrate this patient-centered health delivery model into the national regulatory framework.”

“Surveys suggest that dispensaries are an integral part of safe access to medical cannabis for critically and chronically ill Canadians” said Philippe Lucas, (Co-PI), a research affiliate with the Centre for Addictions Research of B.C, and co-director of Canadians for Safe Access, a national medical cannabis patient advocacy organization, “a well-developed certification program will increase transparency and accountability to this rapidly growing patient group”.

“The grant from the Peter Wall Solutions Initiative will increase the capacity of CAMCD to develop a self-regulatory program for dispensaries”, states Zach Walsh, the principal investigator (PI) on the study, a researcher at the Okanagan campus of UBC, and co-director of the Centre for the Advancement of Psychological Science and Law. “The ultimate goal is to improve the health and well-being of people living in Canada by enhancing safe access to medical cannabis.”

The project team will be working with community partners to organize a series of consultations to develop these standards and to assess their impact on the day-to-day operations of dispensaries, the patient population they serve, and the community-at-large.

—

[1] The Peter Wall Solutions Initiative (PWSI) enables UBC faculty to team with community organizations in order to address issues of societal importance through innovative, interdisciplinary and academically rigorous research projects. The PWSI is supported by the Peter Wall Endowment to UBC. http://research.ubc.ca/vpri/ubc-peter-wall-solutions-initiative.

1) CAMPS Survey

The CAMPS Survey is still ongoing and receiving a great amount of response. We encourage patients to continue to complete the survey, as the results will be very useful in advocating for high standards of patient care.

If you use cannabis for medical purposes and are a resident of Canada, please consider completing the survey at:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CannabisSurvey.

2) Happy Holidays!

CAMCD would like to wish everyone a happy holidays and a great new year! We look forward to getting back to work and moving ahead full steam in the new year!

CANNABIS CULTURE – Do you use cannabis for medical purposes? A coalition of health groups is asking for the help of Canadian medical marijuana users in a new study about barriers to accessing the drug.

The study was created by researchers at the University of British Columbia Okanagan and the Canadian AIDS Society and has the backing of a varied group of partners including the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network, Canadians for Safe Access, the Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries, and the Canadian Treatment Action Council.

Researchers will collect data from a comprehensive online survey filled out by anyone who lives in Canada and uses cannabis for medical purposes. The information will be used in a study that will focus on difficulties in accessing cannabis.

TAKE PART in THE SURVEY

The national survey was created by cannabis activist and researcher Rob Callaway with a grant from UBC Okanagan’s Institute for Healthy Living and Chronic Disease Prevention, based on another study created by Lynne Belle-Isle of the Canadian AIDS society.

“The academic literature is almost silent on the topic,” Callaway told Cannabis Culture. “The cannabis community is well aware of the Hell people go through trying to get access to cannabis, the sick are well aware, some of the court cases have make some lawyers and judges well aware, but by and large, people in academia have no clue.”

Callaway said information collected in the study is intended to add to the base of knowledge in the academic literature and will be helpful in in future studies, court cases and political initiatives on the subject.
Advertisement

“When it’s completed, it will be the most comprehensive study of its kind ever conducted in Canada … to document in the literature the barriers people encounter while trying to access cannabis,” Callaway said.

The study takes about 30 minutes to an hour to complete and includes a wide range of questions about topics including where patients acquire their medicine and interactions they’ve had with medical professionals in relation to medical marijuana. The questions were developed, in part, with a community board of activists, researchers, medical marijuana growers and patients from across the country.

Anybody who is Canadian and “uses cannabis for what they themselves would consider some form of medical use” is invited to participate in the survey. “They don’t have to have their Health Canada card or a recommendation by a physician,” Callaway said.

Callaway said the information will be analysed and the findings presented publicly and published in a journal.

“Because it’s a national study, we’re hoping to acquire a lot of data that hasn’t been found before,” he said.

In the recent court case of R. v. Mernagh, an Ontario judge ruled Canada’s Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) “constitutionally invalid” due to patients having trouble accessing the drug. The judge said the “overwhelming refusal” by doctors “to participate in the medicinal marijuana program completely undermines the effectiveness of the program.”

The government of Canada has proposed a number of changes to the MMAR that have many medical cannabis users worried, including ending personal cultivation and building a system of private for-profit medpot dealers.

Read more: http://www.cannabisculture.com/v2/content/2011/12/01/Study-Investigates-Barriers-Medical-Marijuana-Access-Canada

A groundbreaking new study shows that laws legalizing medical marijuana have resulted in a nearly nine percent drop in traffic deaths and a five percent reduction in beer sales.

“Our research suggests that the legalization of medical marijuana reduces traffic fatalities through reducing alcohol consumption by young adults,” said Daniel Rees, professor of economics at the University of Colorado Denver who co-authored the study with D. Mark Anderson, assistant professor of economics at Montana State University.

The researchers collected data from a variety of sources including the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System.

The study is the first to examine the relationship between the legalization of medical marijuana and traffic deaths.

“We were astounded by how little is known about the effects of legalizing medical marijuana,” Rees said. “We looked into traffic fatalities because there is good data, and the data allow us to test whether alcohol was a factor.”

Anderson noted that traffic deaths are significant from a policy standpoint.

“Traffic fatalities are an important outcome from a policy perspective because they represent the leading cause of death among Americans ages five to 34,” he said.

The economists analyzed traffic fatalities nationwide, including the 13 states that legalized medical marijuana between 1990 and 2009. In those states, they found evidence that alcohol consumption by 20- through 29-year-olds went down, resulting in fewer deaths on the road.

The economists noted that simulator studies conducted by previous researchers suggest that drivers under the influence of alcohol tend to underestimate how badly their skills are impaired. They drive faster and take more risks. In contrast, these studies show that drivers under the influence of marijuana tend to avoid risks. However, Rees and Anderson cautioned that legalization of medical marijuana may result in fewer traffic deaths because it’s typically used in private, while alcohol is often consumed at bars and restaurants.

“I think this is a very timely study given all the medical marijuana laws being passed or under consideration,” Anderson said. “These policies have not been research-based thus far and our research shows some of the social effects of these laws. Our results suggest a direct link between marijuana and alcohol consumption.”

The study also examined marijuana use in three states that legalized medical marijuana in the mid-2000s, Montana, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Marijuana use by adults increased after legalization in Montana and Rhode Island, but not in Vermont. There was no evidence that marijuana use by minors increased.

Opponents of medical marijuana believe that legalization leads to increased use of marijuana by minors.

According to Rees and Anderson, the majority of registered medical marijuana patients in Arizona and Colorado are male. In Arizona, 75 percent of registered patients are male; in Colorado, 68 percent are male. Many are under the age of 40. For instance, 48 percent of registered patients in Montana are under 40.

“Although we make no policy recommendations, it certainly appears as though medical marijuana laws are making our highways safer,” Rees said.

Read more: http://www.sciencenewsline.com/psychology/2011112917200019.html

1) CAMCD Membership

CAMCD will begin accepting applications from dispensaries for certification in early 2012. Check our web site and facebook for updates!

2) Cannabis Access for Medical Purposes Survey

The Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispensaries has been collaborating with researchers at the University of British Columbia, with the Canadian AIDS Society, the Canadian Treatment Action Council, the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network and others to conduct a survey, the Cannabis Access for Medical Purposes Survey (CAMPS).

The information collected will be useful to understand the barriers and facilitators to access to cannabis for medical purposes.

If you use cannabis for medical purposes and are a resident of Canada, please consider completing the survey at

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CannabisSurvey

If you are a dispensary or other organization that works with patients who use cannabis for medical purposes, and would like the hard copies of the surveys and consent forms for those who may not have access to the online survey, please let us know and we’ll send them to you.

Please share this survey with your network. If you would like a button for your website, just ask and we’ll send that to you as well.

Thank you very much for your participation!

Your participation is greatly appreciated.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

3) New Health Canada FAQ

Health Canada has released a new FAQ for their “Proposed Improvements to the Marihuana Medical Access Program (MMAP)”. These reflect a number of suggestions and concerns that CAMCD and others expressed during consultations with Health Canada.

Health Canada has confirmed that medical cannabis dispensaries are welcome to apply to become a Licensed Commercial Producer (LCP).

Health Canada plans to have the LCPs begin production in 2014. Health Canada acknowledges that it will take LCPs time to create a large enough supply to meet patient needs. The Personal Use Production Licenses (PUPLs) and Designated Production Licenses (DPPLs) are therefore to continue into 2014 to address the lack of a consistent supply. PUPLs and DPPLs serve the important role of providing lower costs to patient as well as specialized strains. Rather than removing their licenses outright, CAMCD will urge Health Canada to find other ways to address their concerns around safety and security.

Health Canada has also reopened the opportunity for Canadians to provide feedback on the proposed changes to the MMAP. We encourage anyone who has not yet provided their comment to take advantage of this renewed opportunity. Health Canada’s proposal, as well as information on providing feedback, can be found here: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/consultation/marihuana/_2011/program/index-eng.php

The revised Health Canada “FAQ: Improvements to the Marihuana Medical Access Program” can be found here: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/consultation/marihuana/_2011/program/faq-eng.php

4) Family Physician Forum

CAMCD board members attended the 2011 Family Physician Forum in Montreal Nov. 3-5. The CAMCD booth provided a great opportunity to speak directly with physicians across the country about medical cannabis. The CAMCD booth was heavily attended, providing information about the benefits of cannabis, addressing the concerns and questions of physicians, and introducing them to non-smoking ingestion options such as vapourizers and cannabis edibles. The response from the Forum was overwhelmingly positive and was a fantastic venue in which to share our expertise. CAMCD was able to educate physicians on the process of completing both dispensary and MMAR forms. CAMCD thanks the FMF for the great experience.

5) International Drug Policy Reform Conference

CAMCD Advisory Board Member Rielle Capler attended the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Los Angeles Nov. 2-5. This conference, organized by the Drug Policy Alliance, brings together people from all over the world working toward a common goal: to end the failed war on drugs and move all nations towards drug policy grounded in evidence, compassion, health and human rights. Rielle attended panels and roundtables, visited some dispensaries in Los Angeles, met with other Canadian drug policy reformers at a lunch put on by the newly formed Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, and presented on behalf of CAMCD. The presentation covered CAMCD’s work creating a national association to represent dispensaries, the need for formalized standards, and upcoming changes to the Health Canada’s medical cannabis regulations. This conference was an excellent opportunity to learn first-hand about the different regulatory measures for medical cannabis that exist in various US states, and to share information about what is happening in Canada. Rielle returned with new connections, a wider perspective, practical ideas, validation for CAMCD’s work, and incredible inspiration. CAMCD is extremely grateful to the DPA for their generous scholarship to Rielle that allowed her to attend.

Learn more about the Drug Policy Alliance http://www.drugpolicy.org/

If you use cannabis for medical purposes and are a resident of Canada, please consider completing the survey at:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CannabisSurvey.

The survey is very detailed, but we think it will provide valuable information to advocate for better access.

If you are a dispensary, and would like the hard copies of the surveys and consent forms to give to your patients, please let us know and we’ll send them to you.

If you would like a button for your website, just ask and we’ll send that to you as well.

Thank you very much for your participation!

One of the witnesses heard during Ontario Superior Court hearings on rules governing the use of medical marijuana, a 55-year-old sufferer of multiple sclerosis, testified that when she asked her doctor to approve her application to use marijuana to relieve her chronic pain, the doctor put her hands over her ears and went, “La, la, la, la. I can’t hear you.”

This pretty well encapsulates the federal government’s response to chronic-pain sufferers and medical professionals who are clamouring for a clearer policy on medical marijuana.

The government proposes to remove Health Canada as the ultimate arbiter in approving or rejecting applications to possess marijuana for medical use, and instead leave it up to doctors to decide whether their patients should be licensed to do so. While this might appear to be a liberalization, it is widely being rejected by doctors, who rightly assert that a responsibility that should pertain to Health Canada is being off-loaded on them without appropriate research having been conducted on the medicinal properties of marijuana.

Marijuana was legalized for medical use a decade ago, but shortly after the Conservative government came to power in 2006 it abruptly terminated an accompanying medical-marijuana research program set up to clinically determine its safety and proper use. Such research would have allowed doctors to properly determine who should be prescribed marijuana and, as it were, weed out those who simply want to use it for recreational purposes.

As the president of the Canadian Medical Association has said, the proposed policy, in the absence of necessary research, would leave doctors with the responsibility of prescribing and monitoring an inadequately tested drug, thereby leaving themselves open to doing harm to patients and subject to legal action. As a result, many doctors are refusing to grant patients in chronic pain permission to legally use marijuana, even though the patients have determined through experimentation on their own that it alleviates their suffering.

At the same time, many people with a legitimate medical reason to use marijuana are resorting to black-market sources and are thus left liable to arrest and prosecution for possession of an illegal substance.

The government’s rationalization for its position is that clinical research on marijuana would best be undertaken by the private sector. But such research has been disdained by pharmaceutical companies because there is no money in it for them, since anyone can grow marijuana. The real reason, one suspects, is ideological, that the government is playing to the anti-drug constituency in the same spirit that it tried to shut down Vancouver’s InSite safe injection site for intravenous-drug addicts.

That misguided initiative was recently repelled by a Supreme Court of Canada ruling, after the federal government had appealed lower-court verdicts that were in InSite’s favour. Similarly, an Ontario Superior Court judge ruled this spring that the federal medical-marijuana program is unconstitutional because in its present form it denies adequate access to marijuana for people whose chronic pain it alleviates.

The federal government is appealing that ruling as well. In doing so it risks having existing criminal laws against marijuana possession and cultivation thrown out into the bargain – something the Ontario court ruling would have done had it not been appealed.

To forestall that, the government should immediately revive and fund the marijuana-research program in the interest of coming up with some solid scientific answers on the drug’s ability to alleviate pain. Doctors should not have to be the gatekeepers for the dispensation of an inadequately tested drug whose non-medical use is illegal.
© Copyright (c) Montreal Gazette

Read More: http://www.montrealgazette.com/touch/story.html?id=5641828

1) Health Research Caucus on Pain Research

On Oct. 17 2011, CAMCD director Adam Greenblatt attended the Health Research Caucus on Pain Research in Ottawa, Ontario. “In 2009, Research Canada: An Alliance for Health Discovery established a Health Research Caucus (HRC), drawing Parliamentarians from all political parties to participate in a forum to discuss the critical importance of health research to the health and wealth of Canadians, and consider the benefits of the health research industry’s skilled and knowledgeable work force”. The event featured a number of well respected speakers including but not limited to, Senator Kelvin K. Ogilvie, Dr. Mary Lynch, and Mr. Jacques Hendlisz, and provided a fantastic venue for participants to network and share their expertise.

For more information: rc-rc.ca/events/parliamentary-events

2) International Drug Policy Reform Conference

The Drug Policy Alliance will be hosting the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Los Angeles, California November 2-5 2011. The International Drug Policy Reform Conference is a biennial event that brings together people from around the world who believe that the war on drugs is doing more harm than good. It brings together over 1,000 attendees representing 30 different countries. This year attendees will have the opportunity to spend three days interacting with people committed to finding alternatives to the war on drugs while participating in sessions given by leading experts from around the world.

CAMCD Advisory Board member, Rielle Capler, will be presenting at the conference on the “Innovative Approaches to Medical Marijuana Distribution and Services” panel. This panel will focus on the need for improved patient access to high-quality medical marijuana, support services, and increased civil and legal protections. What are the obstacles facing medical marijuana patients? How are different jurisdictions and providers addressing these issues? Rielle will share information about CAMCD, including our work on the development of a standards and certification system, our efforts to have medical cannabis dispensaries included in the new national regulatory framework for medical cannabis, and the Dispensaries and Indispensable! campaign. CAMCD is grateful for the scholarship awarded to Rielle by the International Drug Policy Reform Conference to attend the conference.

For more information: www.reformconference.org

3) Family Physician Forum

CAMCD will be hosting a booth at the Family Physician Forum in Montreal, Quebec November 3-5, 2011. “The Family Medicine Forum (FMF) is the premier family medicine conference in Canada. FMF 2011 combines the annual scientific assemblies of the College of Family Physicians of Canada, The Quebec College of Family Physicians (QCFP) and the annual workshops of the CFPC’s Sections of Teachers and Researchers. Each year the FMF is attended by over 2500 family physicians, family medicine teachers and researchers, residents, medical students, nurses, nurse practitioners and many other health care professionals who come not only for the great variety of CME offered, but for the opportunity to network with their colleagues and friends from across the country”.

CAMCD’s booth will provide the opportunity for FMF participants from across Canada to have their questions about medical cannabis and dispensaries answered, and will provide a venue for further discussions about how health care practitioners and medical cannabis dispensaries can support each other in ensuring Canadians have access to medical cannabis and receive the best possible level of care.

For more information: fmf.cfpc.ca

Thanks for reading! Have a great day!

Sincerely,

CAMCD