Health Canada Criticized By Police Over Medical Marijuana Enforcement, Documents Show

VIANARCHRIS

VIANARCHRIS

Well-Known Member
Health Canada was flooded with hundreds of letters from police and other officials questioning the department’s oversight of Canada’s medical marijuana program in the two years leading up to a push by Ottawa to commercialize medical pot.

The letters, obtained by HuffPost Canada under access to information laws, detail the complaints from police about the lack of communication between Health Canada and law enforcement across the country when it comes to supervising legal marijuana operations.

Many of the letters from police express frustration about Health Canada’s supervision of some medical marijuana users.

“We have had too many instances where known drug trafficking suspects have been found in possession of large quantities of packaged dried marijuana bud but [we] have not been able to take any legal action because they possess a personal possession licence,” one unidentified RCMP officer in B.C. wrote in June 2013.

“There are a lot of questions which I think we need to have addressed.”
***MORE.....
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/03/05/health-canada-medical-marijuana-enforcement_n_6807664.html?utm_hp_ref=canada
 
doingdishes

doingdishes

Well-Known Member
VIANARCHRIS said:
Health Canada was flooded with hundreds of letters from police and other officials questioning the department’s oversight of Canada’s medical marijuana program in the two years leading up to a push by Ottawa to commercialize medical pot.

The letters, obtained by HuffPost Canada under access to information laws, detail the complaints from police about the lack of communication between Health Canada and law enforcement across the country when it comes to supervising legal marijuana operations.

Many of the letters from police express frustration about Health Canada’s supervision of some medical marijuana users.

“We have had too many instances where known drug trafficking suspects have been found in possession of large quantities of packaged dried marijuana bud but [we] have not been able to take any legal action because they possess a personal possession licence,” one unidentified RCMP officer in B.C. wrote in June 2013.

“There are a lot of questions which I think we need to have addressed.”
***MORE.....
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/03/05/health-canada-medical-marijuana-enforcement_n_6807664.html?utm_hp_ref=canada
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from the article-
One B.C. Mountie, Shane Holmquist, wrote multiple letters complaining about Health Canada’s medical marijuana program. He is now a star witness in the federal government’s case for banning at-home growers. Many of the concerns he mentions in an affidavit for the court are backed up in his earlier correspondences with Health Canada.

he doesn't look much like a star now does he...
 
oddish

oddish

Well-Known Member
So many issues are tied to ignorance.
I have a very good friend who is a police officer and, before we started speaking on the subject, was under the impression that marijuana was very harmful and that it was a party drug and that the only legal users were those who were physically unable to live a normal life.
I have multiple family members who are registered nurses and are dead against using mmj in any capacity, including at the hospital level or even in palliative care.

The stigma attached to mmj has not changed enough.
 
doingdishes

doingdishes

Well-Known Member
oddish said:
So many issues are tied to ignorance.
I have a very good friend who is a police officer and, before we started speaking on the subject, was under the impression that marijuana was very harmful and that it was a party drug and that the only legal users were those who were physically unable to live a normal life.
I have multiple family members who are registered nurses and are dead against using mmj in any capacity, including at the hospital level or even in palliative care.

The stigma attached to mmj has not changed enough.
Click to expand...
my Mom is a nurse and HATES Mj in any form but she said she gave her patients "pot cookies" because it seemed to help them. she saw the value in it for someone else already using it but still won't come over & see the good side
 
oddish

oddish

Well-Known Member
doingdishes said:
my Mom is a nurse and HATES Mj in any form but she said she gave her patients "pot cookies" because it seemed to help them. she saw the value in it for someone else already using it but still won't come over & see the good side
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This seems to be the norm. They're afraid of things they didn't learn in school or that aren't told to them by the doctors, who tend to hear it from the pharmacy reps :)

I know 2 hospitals in Ontario that are both totally onboard with the idea, but without support of the colleges it will be tough.
 
doingdishes

doingdishes

Well-Known Member
oddish said:
This seems to be the norm. They're afraid of things they didn't learn in school or that aren't told to them by the doctors, who tend to hear it from the pharmacy reps :)

I know 2 hospitals in Ontario that are both totally onboard with the idea, but without support of the colleges it will be tough.
Click to expand...
too bad they wouldn't actually do some trials....
 
oddish

oddish

Well-Known Member
doingdishes said:
too bad they wouldn't actually do some trials....
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They sort of will.. it depends.
As an example, the hospitals in London have been fairly pro-CC for a while, especially in the cancer wards.
There's more than a few doctors in London that filled out paperwork for the CC and London has around 1000 patients in their system. The problem is that all of this is "unofficial" - they're now looking at stocking it in the hospitals if they can get consistent quality, effects and dosages - this is the hardest part of what they are trying to do.
 
VIANARCHRIS

VIANARCHRIS

Well-Known Member
oddish said:
they're now looking at stocking it in the hospitals if they can get consistent quality, effects and dosages - this is the hardest part of what they are trying to do.
Click to expand...
And therein lies the problem. They want to treat it and expect it to be a 'uniform standard' like a pharmaceutical drug when it isn't. I was told to eat alot of foods high in potassium to reduce my seizures, but not every banana has the identical amount of potassium. Stop calling it a drug and treat it as a natural health supplement. FFS
 
oddish

oddish

Well-Known Member
VIANARCHRIS said:
And therein lies the problem. They want to treat it and expect it to be a 'uniform standard' like a pharmaceutical drug when it isn't. I was told to eat alot of foods high in potassium to reduce my seizures, but not every banana has the identical amount of potassium. Stop calling it a drug and treat it as a natural health supplement. FFS
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It's a tough sell. Until it's not a controlled substance they just can't do it that way.
This is why they're spending $$$$ on extract research and metered doses of only what is required.
They're breaking it down to it's most basic elements so they can reconstruct it without the high and with only the pain and seizure management properties.
 
G

gb123

Well-Known Member
It's very hard to figure what a person needs to hear in order to realize the smoke screen that's been put in front of their eyes, over and over and over again.

Younger older...doesn't matter. It still carries the wrong message due to prohibition!
 
oddish

oddish

Well-Known Member
gb123 said:
It's very hard to figure what a person needs to hear in order to realize the smoke screen that's been put in front of their eyes, over and over and over again.

Younger older...doesn't matter. It still carries the wrong message due to prohibition!
Click to expand...
It's true. I've been surprised lately though by family and friends, now that they know more about my own involvement in this area.
My grandfather has cancer and a fracture in his spine and he took mmj the first we offered it to him, no questions asked. Since then his wife and his daughter have both requested mmj honey to help them relax and other extended family members are slowly, yet surely, warming up to the idea of mmj for medical purposes.

Unfortunately not everyone is so open minded, but I'm happy to finally see the stigma lifted with those I know on a personal level.
 
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