It is a beautiful,
foggy Florida morning. Driving across from the east to the west coast, it
almost seems as if the fog is lifting with the morning sun immediately ahead of
my headlights. Doesn't seem so foggy where I am, but just up ahead, it seems
like pea soup.
We are seeking to inform veterans -- many of whom we strongly believe could benefit from the use of marijuana for a variety of ailments, including
post traumatic stress, cancer, and other neurological disorders -- that cannabis is being legally and effectively used by veterans in other states.
The policy of the
Veterans Administration on cannabis, while good for veterans in legal states, is one of exclusion. As my friend Al Byrne
puts it, VA is practicing treatment by geography. They allow the use of
cannabis in courses of treatment in 20 states, but it is disallowed and grounds
for removal of pain medication in the other 30 states where it is not legal to
consume cannabis, an inhumane policy when you consider that the purpose of using cannabis in many of these cases is to reduce the amount of debilitating medication they need to effectively manage their pain.
Today is day three of the tour, and I join the gang at the Bay Pines VA Medical Center. Our goal this week
is to get information in the hands of veterans. There will be legislation and
ballot initiatives to consider this year in Florida, and we need to make sure
that our veterans and our Veterans Administrations are prepared for it.
Most importantly,
everyone involved needs to understand how urgent the matter is. We cannot wait
for the FDA. We cannot wait for the DEA. We cannot wait for the NIDA. We can
barely even wait for the Florida Legislature to act. Allowing the charade of
Reefer Madness to continue hurts our veterans in ways we have only begun to
calculate.
