For immediate release  3/1/03

Contact Denele Campbel l at 479-839-2475, 479-466-2282, or Email:  arkdruglawreform@mindspring.com

Marijuana Patients Tell All in Hopes of Favorable Legislation

Little Rock, AR:  Five patients and one caregiver slated to give testimony at an upcoming House Committee on Public Health, Welfare, and Labor are facing down their own fears in order to give voice to the need for medical marijuana legislation to be passed in this session. Three men and three women from across the state will make their appearance Tuesday March 11 in Room 130 of the State Capitol.

"Marijuana helped me when I needed it," says 'Stan,' who remains hesitant about giving our his real name. "My wife and I have done well, in management jobs for over thirty years, and running our own successful businesses. We've raised a good family."

Stan used marijuana from June til December 2001 while undergoing radiation and chemotherapy for inoperable cancer in his lung and lymph nodes. "I'd take one or two puffs," he says, explaining that it was the only thing that allowed him to eat.

Another patient, Kendle G., suffered crushed knees when he was pinned against a loading dock by the rear bumper of a delivery truck. "I consider myself fortunate to not have had my legs severed, but am left with chronic pain and difficulty walking." He cites addiction to oxycontin and other prescription pain medications as the reason he turned to marijuana. "I was amazed at how well it relieved my pain." He believes that the use of marijuana allowed him to return to college to train for a new career.

Other patients expected to testify will include a grandmother who suffers post-polio syndrome, a woman disabled in a car wreck, a woman whose 71-year-old sister was able to find relief in her slow death from complications of diabetes, and a man suffering muscle spasticity from paralysis. In all cases, these Arkansans state that marijuana has been more effective than prescribed drugs, and/or creates less harmful side effects.

Patient testimony is expected to be only one part of the hearing, which will also address the various details of the proposed law, review the medical marijuana laws operating in eight other states, and include testimony from medical and other professional interests. A simple majority of the twenty legislators on the committee will have to vote in favor of the measure, House Bill 1321, in order for it to be considered by the House.

"The stories shared with us by these brave souls are just the tip of the iceberg in Arkansas," stated Denele Campbell, Executive Director of the Alliance. "It takes a lot of courage for them to talk about their previous marijuana use, since such activity was illegal and their lives remain complicated by their ongoing debilitating medical conditions. They believe strongly in the need for reform -- that's why they are speaking up."

Contact information for interviews with these patients is available by contacting Denele Campbell.

The full text of the stories of the six patients/caregiver who will testify will follow this email. An additional 64 patient contacts have been received by the Alliance, summaries of which will be introduced at the hearing.