Originally appeared at: http://www.metrosantacruz.com/metro-santa-cruz/10.20.10/letters-1042.html Daniel Wool’s article on www.santacruz.com, “Santa Cruz County Enacts Moratorium on Marijuana Dispensaries,” highlights why a moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries may be a good idea, but it fails to consider some of the big picture details. Before we start making definitive policy decisions regarding the marijuana industry, further scientific research is desperately needed in order to better understand marijuana’s risks and benefits in order to effectively treat patients. Research is currently limited by a government monopoly on the marijuana supply through the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), resulting in a stock of undiversified poor research due to the fact that NIDA’s mission is counter to developing marijuana into a medicine. More research is needed before we can make sound policy decisions for medical marijuana dispensaries, and this can be accomplished by breaking the government’s monopoly over the marijuana supply. Stephen Morseman, Santa Cruz MAPS marijuana campaign coordinator Stephen Morseman’s letter to the editor states: “DANIEL WOOL’S article on www.santacruz.com, “Santa Cruz County Enacts Moratorium on Marijuana Dispensaries,” highlights why a moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries may be a good idea, but it fails to consider some of the big picture details. Before we start making definitive policy decisions regarding the marijuana industry, further scientific research is desperately needed in order to better understand marijuana’s risks and benefits in order to effectively treat patients. Research is currently limited by a government monopoly on the marijuana supply through the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), resulting in a stock of undiversified poor research due to the fact that NIDA’s mission is counter to developing marijuana into a medicine. More research is needed before we can make sound policy decisions for medical marijuana dispensaries, and this can be accomplished by breaking the government’s monopoly over the marijuana supply.”
