Ariz. Legalizes Medical Marijuana After All

A measure to legalize medical marijuana in Arizona passed after trailing in the polls throughout almost two weeks of vote-counting, The Arizona Republic reported Nov. 13. 

The Arizona Medical Marijuana Act, or Proposition 203, passed by 4,341 votes out of 1.67 million counted; provisional ballots, cast by voters whose eligibility had to be verified, turned the tide.  Arizona is now the 15th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana, although the federal government has not approved its use. 

Under the measure, physicians can prescribe marijuana for patients with “debilitating medical conditions, including cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and Alzheimer's disease.”  Patients, who will be required to register with the state health department, will be able to purchase up to two-and-a-half ounces of marijuana every two weeks at licensed dispensaries, or to cultivate their own plants if they live too far away from approved outlets.

Under the measure, only 124 dispensaries — which must be run by non-profits — will be formed at the outset. The number of dispensaries allowed by the measure is proportionate to the number of the state’s operating pharmacies. The state has 120 days from Nov. 29 to finalize its rules governing medical marijuana, and should commence a review of applications from patients and would-be dispensaries as of April 2011. 

Carolyn Short, who chaired Keep AZ Drug Free, the campaign opposing Proposition 203, said the new measure was only a “concept” and that it would make marijuana available to everyone. 

Andrew Myers, who managed the Arizona Medical Marijuana Policy Project's campaign for Proposition 203, acknowledged that some voters were worried that the proposed program would be loosely run and resemble programs established in California and Colorado. He said the new program would be strictly regulated. “It's up to us now to prove them wrong and assuage those concerns,” he said.