What Utah Can Expect from Marijuana for Medical Purposes Through the Prism of Minnesota's Experience

MINNEAPOLIS – For some, it is a threat, for others, a boon.

Hundreds of marijuana plants are now legally growing in Minnesota, in a highly secure private facility on the outskirts of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

"We are now filmed, probably from all angles," said Dr. Jay Westwater while he was walking in a jungle of indoor greenery watched by batteries of security cameras. Westwater is the CEO of Minnesota Medical Solutions, one of only two state-owned companies legally allowed to grow marijuana.

In Minnesota, the two companies that grow marijuana also turn greenery into pills, gums, oils and vapors of ordinary appearance. Each company runs "clinics" or dispensaries where the drugs are legally sold to certified users.

The plant has swept the political waters of Utah this year and the Utah legislature is expected to meet during a special session in December to address the issue. Nearly two-thirds of states have already legalized marijuana for medical purposes. Their experiences provide clues as to what Utah can expect now that voters have approved, according to unofficial election results, proposition 2.

"The world"

When the first cannabis-derived drugs were put up for sale in 2015, Kim Kelsey was queuing up at midnight, the first Minnesota customer to obtain marijuana for legal purposes.

"I will not stop smiling," Kelsey said in a recent interview. "It has meant the world."

She buys the medicine for her son, Alec. Encephalitis at the age of 5 years left him with brain damage and an IQ below 75, according to his mother. She said that he was suffering from epileptic seizures almost every day for 22 years – serious seizures.

"Yes, she puts her life in danger, every one of those she has," she confided during a recent visit to the clinic where she bought the marijuana drug from her family. ; Alec.

Cannabis has dramatically reduced the number of seizures and at age 27 it is "500% better," she said. "For more than three years he's been on it, he has surprised us all, cognitively."

In a recent fall evening, in the suburbs of Minneapolis, 12-year-old Tyler Kennedy threw a tantrum into the driveway of his family's home. He was upset because his father had closed the garage door. Tyler's problems about such a minor problem dramatically illustrate his medical problems: he suffers from severe autism and Tourette's syndrome. And yet, since he started taking marijuana for medical purposes, his mother said his behavior had greatly improved.

"It's a lot better than before," Katie Kennedy said as she watched Tyler's drive through the crisis. "I do not think we've seen a healthier Ty for 12 years, that's really not the case."

& # 39; An experience & # 39;

The Minnesota legislature approved marijuana for medical purposes in 2014 after a heated debate like in Utah today.

"It's really an experience," said Dr. Tom Arneson of the Medical Cannabis Bureau of the Minnesota Department of Health. "Our warning documents clearly indicate that these products are little known."

Surveys conducted by the Arneson service show that most users are satisfied with the results. Sixty-one percent of the users surveyed say they derive "a lot of benefits". Only 10% say they derive "little or no benefit" from cannabis drugs.

Participating health care providers are a little less enthusiastic: 43% report "a lot of benefits" for their patients; 24% say that their patients receive "little or no benefit".

The surveys are a bit below real scientific evidence.

"People say it makes them feel good," Arneson said. "We do not have a group (control) here, so we do not make statements about the effectiveness."

As part of growing marijuana, Minnesota Medical Solutions does not use any pesticides. Tiny orange ladybirds patrol the marijuana leaves to engulf harmful insects.

During the 16-week growing season of marijuana plants, each is labeled with grocery-style barcodes to prevent them from being diverted to the streets.

"We have inventory controls and we can track" factories, said Westwater. "We know when something is missing, the diversion possibilities are really minimal."

Minnesota law does not allow the sale of marijuana plant material. Smoking is not allowed. No candy or brownie is sold. Only eight cannabis clinics are licensed in a state slightly larger than Utah. A licensed pharmacist advises each recipient.

Patients suffering from any of the diseases described by law must be allowed to use cannabis by a participating health care provider. The list of approved uses has increased over the past three years as authorities have added other health problems. Currently approved conditions include cancers with acute pain or nausea, glaucoma, HIV / AIDS, Tourette's syndrome, ALS, seizures / epilepsy, severe spasms, Crohn's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, persistent pain and incurable disease.

Physicians must be enrolled in the program to certify the use of cannabis by patients. The Mayo Clinic, headquartered in Rochester, Minnesota, allows its doctors to voluntarily participate. Maren Schroeder uses it to treat her PTSD.

"My doctor at Mayo is my certification provider," said Schroeder. She is the co-founder of a pro-marijuana group called Sensible Minnesota. "What we learned in Minnesota, when we legalized medicine in Minnesota, the sky did not collapse."

As in Utah, law enforcement initially fought legalization in Minnesota. But they finally accepted a very tough compromise bill, according to Faribault Police Chief Andy Bohlen, who also chairs the Minnesota Violent Crime Coordinating Council.

"So, if it can help treat some types of pain, some types of terminal illness," Bohlen said, "law enforcement will not stand in the way of that." And we did not not seen any problems at all since been adopted by this state ".

But there are major concerns, including criticisms of astronomical costs, very low participation, and serious concerns about whether a political door has been opened.

"We continue to be under pressure in the state of Minnesota to legalize marijuana:" Why do not you legalize it? "Said Bohlen.

Cost factors

The cost is an immediate concern of many marijuana users for medical purposes in Minnesota.

Kelsey said that his son's condition was now "500% better than it was before", but that his CBD oil flasks cost a lot. "By month it's $ 707," she says.

"Cost is absolutely a problem," said Arneson. "The insurance does not pay for that, and costs people at least $ 100, maybe up to $ 1,000 a month."

The high cost may partly explain why the use of marijuana for medical purposes seems relatively low. Out of 5 million Minnesota, fewer than 12,000 patients use it regularly.

"Yes, I think the cost is definitely an important factor to reduce the use," Schroeder said. She accuses the details of Minnesota's medical marijuana law – widely regarded as the strictest in the country. She says the law makes medications difficult to obtain because only eight clinics are allowed.

There are contradictory theories about what pushed costs so high. Schroeder thinks it's because only two companies are allowed to grow, process and sell marijuana-based drugs, so there's not enough competition. But a spokesman for Minnesota Medical Solutions said the company had not even made a profit yet.

"We have high processing costs," said Westwater.

Both marijuana companies need to refine the weed into oils, liquids and pills, performing thorough testing. No plant material can be sold or smoked. It is a delicate political compromise to satisfy those who feared that marijuana would be abused and find its way onto the street.

Bohlen thinks these restrictions are appropriate.

"I do not think the real experts would say that smoking vegetative marijuana has a health benefit," he said.

Another problem is that a minority of medical users report dizziness, nausea and other side effects.

"They are usually of fairly mild to moderate intensity," Arneson said. "But sometimes they are bad enough for people to stop because of the side effects."

In the state surveys of certified users, some patients reported feeling "very high" or "stoned," but this does not seem to be the case for Alec Kelsey.

"It's not high," said his mother, who believes medical cannabis is worth every penny. "You can not get high on the product he uses, it heals his brain, giving him a quality of life."

Culture change

In Minnesota, opponents of marijuana for medical purposes have generally been silent since the law authorizing it was passed four years ago.

"I think a lot of the fears have been dispelled," Westwater said.

But in Minnesota, concerns have been voiced in Utah: does the approval of marijuana create a political impetus that could push a state to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes?

Surprisingly, Kim Bemis, who organizes the lobbying for marijuana for recreational purposes, actually thinks that Minnesota's law allowing marijuana for medical purposes is a good thing.

"I would not want to cancel it, no, because I think we wrote a very strict law," said Bemis, who chairs a group called Smart Approaches to Marijuana, Minnesota. What worries him is the growth of marijuana as a big industry, and he thinks that the approval of marijuana for medical purposes would have pushed Minnesota more in the same direction.

Schroeder, a pro-marijuana activist, believes the move is positive.

"I think when people start to see that the sky is not in the medical realm, it's okay to start discussing the use of adults and to limit the criminalization and put people in jail for consuming marijuana, "said Schroeder.

Several political candidates in the state of Minnesota have approved marijuana for recreational purposes this year. Bemis is worried about where this might lead.

"I'm not sure if someone is smoking a joint at home," Bemis said. "We just do not want to have commercial marijuana in the state of Minnesota."

This point of view was echoed by Bohlen who said that "Big Marijuana" was becoming a reproduction of "Big Tobacco".

"We have been fighting this battle for many years against companies that target children to smoke tobacco," Bohlen said. "You always see commercials on TV, are we going to have the same fight in 10 years with marijuana?"

Bohlen and other critics refer to Colorado, which legalized marijuana for medical purposes in 2000. Has this decision created a political climate of marijuana acceptance that ultimately led to the 39, Marijuana Approval for Recreational Purposes?

"I think this definitely changes the marijuana culture in a state," said Mike Van Dyke of the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment. "I think when you legalize marijuana for medical purposes, it becomes more accepted."

Door to leisure?

When Colorado legalized marijuana for recreational purposes in 2012, many critics feared that it would result in a much higher rate of marijuana use among teens.

"I think that was not what we saw in Colorado," Van Dyke said. "What we've seen in Colorado is really … marijuana use among teens has been pretty flat since 2005."

Yet other data from Colorado seem to reinforce the meaning of marijuana criticism.

Critics in Minnesota have recently released a report on the marijuana situation in Colorado Colorado. According to the DEA, overall marijuana use in Colorado has increased by 45% since the legalization of the recreational pot in 2012. Emergency room visits related to marijuana increased by 52%. Traffic deaths involving marijuana-positive drivers more than doubled to 138 deaths in 2017.

However, marijuana is not the deadliest on Colorado's roads.

"Our data shows that alcohol remains the # 1 substance detected in fatal car accidents, closely followed by marijuana," said Dominique Mendiola, director of marijuana coordination at the Colorado governor's office . But there are other disturbing statistics in Colorado.

"We have seen impacts," Van Dyke said. "We have seen an increase in the number of hospitalizations (related to marijuana), we have also seen an increase in children's intoxication, and we have also seen in Colorado that the number of pregnant women who use marijuana is higher. high that in other states where not this access to marijuana.So, I really think that there is a risk to public health and that there is enough to think for Utah. "

Of course, it is not certain that Minnesota – or Utah – is following the Colorado initiative. Marijuana for medical purposes may or may not be a step in the direction of legalized smoking.

"I do not think it's a good argument to limit patients' access to a drug that can change and save lives," said Schroeder.

Nevertheless, Bohlen fears that the pressure will continue to grow.

"Once you have opened the door and allowed part of it," said the police chief, "therefore, even though we allow liquids, oils and tablets, there is always a pressure of lobbyist to allow smoking marijuana vegetatively. "

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Bohlen admits however that it is a national trend. Regardless of what Minnesota or Utah do, polls show that momentum across the country is moving more and more towards marijuana Bohlen thinks it's a dangerous political drift caused by an industry of Marijuana whose product is very different from the time of love-ins and pot parties in the hippie era.

"I think the new substance produced, THC levels are much higher," Bohlen said. "So, the effects of marijuana are felt much stronger than 30 years ago."