New Times / Letter To The Editor

Medical cannabis should be priced justly

Mike Ward

I read with interest the story “Witness to a death” (Aug. 6) regarding an alleged home invasion to steal medical marijuana. If the price for the medicine weren’t so outrageous, people wouldn’t be killing each other over it.

I pay rip-off prices for my pot from greedy growers/ providers: $50 for a small amount. If I were to buy a pound at the same price rate, it would cost me $6,400, though it would probably cost no more than $10 to grow. My insurance does not cover it and I can’t grow it myself due to my medical condition. I am a legal medical pot user who has serious nerve damage and ALS-like symptoms. My pot is supplied by a medical pot delivery service that pays state taxes.
 

I must ration the very little I can afford to buy. Really, it’s like paying $1,000 to someone for
a glass of water in the desert. The 1995 law regarding medical marijuana was called the “compassionate use law” not the “let’s get rich off the sick people law”. I worked to get the 1995 law voted in.
 

Pot providers have justified the exorbitant price because of risks they take to grow and provide it to users but now there is no risk since President Obama has changed federal drug-enforcement policy toward state sanctioned medical marijuana users and providers. I believe the price should be dropped from $400 to $10 for an ounce, as a result. If the price were dropped there would be less violence. Furthermore, I believe medical marijuana should be provided by pharmacies, as all other legal drugs are sold, because the pot care clubs are ripping off the poor sick people who need it.