The Michigan Department of Community Health released the Regulations governing the Medical Marijuana Act approved by the voters in November. They can be viewed at the MDCH web site.

The revised Regulations are a complete reversal of the initial Draft Regulations released in December, which the medical marijuana community strenuously objected to at the public hearing held in Lansing on January 5, 2009. The revised Regulation closely follows the MMA and eliminates the objectionable inspections, inventories and other intrusive features of the original Draft. These Regulations represent a complete and thorough victory for the medical marijuana community and recognition of its strength and persuasiveness at the MCDH.

The final Regulations represent a successful effort by all those who objected to the original Drafts including the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association led by Greg Francisco, the Marijuana Policy Project's Karen O'Keefe, whose articulate and concise objections were reflected in the final Regulations and last but not least, the Michigan ACLU's Mike Steinberg and Shelli Weisberg, its Legislative Director. These groups should all be congratulated for their unstinting efforts to help all those who will use and benefit from this progressive and beneficial law.

Also, special thanks should go to Tim Beck, an early and persistent advocate for medical marijuana and a leader in the local earlier successful efforts in Flint, Ferndale and Detroit to pass medical marijuana ordinances, to Matt Abel who advocated tirelessly for medical marijuana across the state and finally to Chuck Ream who led the successful effort to get medical marijuana approved in Ann Arbor in 2004.

There were many others who appeared at the hearing and explained their particular needs as patients and caregivers and their objections to the Department’s misguided focus on its and not the medical marijuana patient’s needs.

The MDCH hasn’t published the forms for Patient applications or a Doctor’s recommendation. However, both the MMA and the Regulations list almost identical the requirements for both. A doctor’s recommendation will have to be a

“Written certification” means a document signed by a physician stating the patient’s debilitating medical condition and stating that, in the physician’s professional opinion, the patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of marihuana to treat or alleviate the patient’s debilitating medical condition or symptoms associated with the debilitating medical condition” Rule 1 (22).

The doctor can give a “written certification” for debilitating conditions described in the regulations and MMA as:

(a) Cancer, glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, agitation of Alzheimer's disease, nail patella, or the treatment of these conditions.

(b) A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces, for a specific patient, 1 or more of the following: cachexia or wasting syndrome; severe and chronic pain; severe nausea; seizures, including but not limited to those characteristic of epilepsy; or severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of multiple sclerosis.

(c) Any other medical condition or treatment for a medical condition approved by the department pursuant to a petition submitted under R 333.133. Rule 1 (5)

A patient’s application will have to include:

(i) Name, address, and date of birth of the qualifying patient. The address for the qualifying patient shall be a physical address located in this state. A qualifying patient who is homeless shall not be required to provide a physical address.

(ii) Name, address, and telephone number of the qualifying patient’s physician.

(iii) The name, address, and date of birth of the patient’s primary caregiver, if applicable. A qualifying patient may designate 1 primary caregiver to assist with his or her medical use of marihuana.

If a patient names a caregiver their application will have to include:

(iv) A designation of whether the qualifying patient or the patient’s primary caregiver, if applicable, will be allowed to possess marihuana plants for the qualifying patient’s medical use.

(v) An attestation by the primary caregiver named on the application that he or she agrees to serve as the patient’s primary caregiver.

(vi) A primary caregiver shall authorize the department to use the information provided on the application to secure his or her criminal conviction history to determine if he or she has a felony conviction involving illegal drugs.

Both the patient and, if appropriate, the caregiver will have to include with their application

“photographic identification of both the qualifying patient and the patient’s primary caregiver if applicable”

Applications will have to be accompanied by a $100.00 filing fee which will be used by the Department to verify the information in the application within 15 days and, if approved, send the patient, and if appropriate, a caregiver their individual registration card. Once a patient and/or caregiver has their card they’re fall within the protections of the statute.

There are many other provisions of the statute dealing with the protections of the statute, the addition of other debilitating conditions, renewals and revocations of registrations.

Notably the Regulations do not list the exemptions to the statute’s protections. They generally are:

(b) This act shall not permit any person to do any of the following:

(1) Undertake any task under the influence of marihuana, when doing so would constitute negligence or professional malpractice.

(2) Possess marihuana, or otherwise engage in the medical use of marihuana.(A) in a school bus; (b) on the grounds of any preschool or primary or secondary school; or (C) in any correctional facility.

Smoke marihuana: (A) on any form of public transportation; or (b) in any public place.

(4) Operate, navigate, or be in actual physical control of any motor vehicle, aircraft, or motorboat while under the influence of marihuana.

(5) Use marihuana if that person does not have a serious or debilitating medical condition.

These are the basic requirements of the MMA and the MDCH Regulations as they’ll go into effect on April 4, 2009. Any one who has one or more of the qualifying “debilitating conditions” and wants to become registered patient under the law should contact their primary care physicians immediately and ask for a written certification described above. If their physician refuses to provide a certification get a copy of their medical records describing their particular “debilitating condition” and make an appointment with other physicians who will give “Written Certifications” for patients.

The physicians who are willing to issue the “certifications” will be posted on the M3P website as we register them. We’ll also post lists of caregivers once we start registering them too.

M3P will place the forms on the website as they’re published. Stay in touch.