Part 1

Current Articles on Medical Marijuana or Legalization

Select a news article or research publication about medical marijuana or marijuana legalization. Get a copy of the article. Write a summary of the article including the following: 1) Write a summary of the story or research that is being described or addressed. 2) What are the proposed solutions (if any) or approaches to marijuana policy? 3) Are differing views described in the article? If so, what are those views? 4) Describe your personal or professional opinions about this issue and the article itself. Bring both your summary and the article to class.

Also: Discern between your personal AOD use policy and an AOD policy for the community. Considering information about marijuana including pharmacology, trends and patterns of use in America, and current debates about legalization- write your position on the following:
What is a practical policy for the USA to adopt (Illegal, legal, decriminalize, medical only) for marijuana? What your personal observation and understanding is of people who use/abuse/addictively use marijuana?

Oregon Medical Marijuana History

On Nov. 3, 1998, Oregon voters approved Ballot Measure 67. The result of the "yes" vote (55%) allowed medical use of marijuana in Oregon within specified limits. It also established a state-controlled permit system. In December 1998, the Oregon Legislature passed Measure 67 into law.

The law, known as the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act (Oregon Revised Statutes 475.300 - ORS 475.346), provides legal protections for qualified patients; requires a physician-written statement of the patient's qualifying debilitating medical condition; allows for a caregiver to provide assistance; and mandates an Oregon Health Authority registration system.

In May 1999, the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP) was created to administer the registration program under the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act. The Oregon Medical Marijuana Program is totally fee-supported. No state funds are used to support the program.

Legal Protection

• The Oregon Medical Marijuana Act (OMMA) protects medical marijuana users in the state of Oregon who comply with its requirements from criminal prosecution for production, possession, or delivery of marijuana.

• The OMMA neither protects marijuana plants from seizure nor individuals from prosecution if the federal government chooses to take action against patients, caregivers or growers under the federal Controlled Substances Act.

• An Oregon Medical Marijuana card protects cardholders only within the state of Oregon.

• Oregon cardholders are only protected in another state if that state legally accepts Oregon's medical marijuana cards. Because medical marijuana programs vary by state, you may want to contact the state to which you are traveling for information on its laws.

• An Oregon cardholder acts at his or her own risk when possessing, producing or delivering medical marijuana in another state without a medical marijuana card from that state.

• Nothing in the OMMA specifically addresses whether or not you can be evicted or terminated from employment because you are a cardholder. It is up to you to decide whether or not to tell your landlord or employer that you are a cardholder.

• If you have questions about these important issues, consult with an attorney.

Confidentiality

• The OMMP will only communicate directly with the patient.

• All written requests to release information about a patient must be signed and dated by the patient.

• The OMMP will not accept written or verbal requests for information from a caregiver, grower, or any other person or agency without the patient's written permission.

• The names and addresses of OMMP participants are confidential and not subject to public disclosure.

• Law enforcement personnel may contact the OMMP only to verify whether an individual is a patient, caregiver or grower or that a location is a registered growsite address.

• The OMMP will verify for law enforcement whether the patient, caregiver, grower, or growsite address in question is registered, or if an application is in process.

• The OMMP will disclose patient information to others only at the specific written request of the patient.

Growing and Possession

• The OMMP cannot supply seeds, starter plants, or give advice on how to grow medical marijuana.

• A patient may reimburse his or her grower for the cost of supplies and utilities associated with the production of his or her medical marijuana; the Act does not allow reimbursement for labor or any other costs.

• All usable marijuana, plants, seedlings and starts are the property of the patient and must be returned to the patient upon request.

• Marijuana may be transferred by a registry identification cardholder to another registry identification cardholder as long no consideration is paid for the transfer.

OMMP Statistics as of July 2015:

Part 2

Questions

Using the textbook and class notes, answer the following questions.

Ksir, C., Hart, C., Ray,O. Drugs, Society and Human Behavior, Twelfth Edition. McGraw Hill Publisher

1. Define the term drug:

2. What is the term for drugs that alter consciousness, thought processes, mood or behavior?

3. List the drug categories by effect. Give examples for each.

4. List the drug categories by legal definition (the text calls it "major types of commonly abused drugs"). Give examples for each.

5. Define and give examples for

Licit Drugs

Illicit Drugs

6. Where do we get our information about alcohol/drug tobacco use? Note what sources the textbook uses when giving statistics and demographics about current trends. (Especially charts on pages 26-31, Chapter 1)

Sources of Information: Go to the websites for the following: name the organization, what information can you find at the site

NIH
NIDA
SAMHSA
NSDUH
NIAAA
DEA
FDA
CDC

The following are reflection papers to complete Part one.

1. Reflection Paper: find the definition of Addiction "for the Public"; read and summarize this article in your own words. Does this definition make sense? Do you agree with this explanation of addiction? Why or why not? American Society of Addiction Medicine: The "for the public" Definition of Addiction

http://www.asam.org/for-the-public/definition-of-addiction

2. Reflection Paper: Find the DSM IV and DSM V definitions of abuse and addiction. Explain the difference between the 2 approaches to defining abuse/addiction. Use the information from chapter 2 in the textbook andhttp://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/dsmfactsheet/dsmfact.htm

Part 3

Physiology: Chapter 4

Explain the function of each of the following terms:

Neuron- basic structural unit of the nervous system- Draw and label a neuron

Dendrite
Receptor
Pre-Synaptic
Synapse/synaptic cleft
Post-synaptic
Neuron, cell body
Axon
Terminal
Terminal vesicles
Neurotransmitters
Reuptake
Metabolizing enzymes
Understanding how receptors function:
Agonist
Antagonist
CNS
Brain Stem

Cerebellum

Cerebral Cortex

RAS

Basal Ganglia

Hypothalamus

Limbic System

Hypothalamus

PNS
Somatic nervous system
Sensory information neurons-(afferent)
Motor neurons-(efferent) voluntary actions
Autonomic Nervous system (ANS)
Sympathetic
Parasympathetic

Match the terms in the left column to the short definitions in the right column:

Chapter 5 - How and why drugs work

Write a short definition in your own words for the following terms:

1. Threshold Dose

2. Effect/side effect

3. Safety Margin

4. Lethal Dose

5. Potency

6. Toxicity

7. Metabolize/ biotransformation

8. Half Life

9. Tolerance

10. Cross tolerance

11. Adaptive Process: Pharmacodynamic tolerance (Drug dependence)

12. Withdrawal

13. Synergistic (potentiate) Drug Interaction

14. Antagonistic Drug Interaction

15. Name 2 main symptoms of Physical Dependence

Name 2 main symptoms of Psychological Dependence

16. Elimination and Metabolism:

All drugs are metabolized (broken down) by the _____________(organ of the body).

17. Most metabolites are excreted out of the body through _______________.

Part Three Questions

Chapter 3 Laws and Regulations: The Road to Regulation

1. Explain some of the problems arising in the USA in the early 1900's with patent medicines.

2. What are the main components of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906? How was this law attempting to protect the public?

3. What are the main components of the Sherley Amendment:How was this law attempting to protect the public?

4. How did the 1938 Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act improve the 1906 Food and Drug Act?

5. What are the main components of the 1952 Durham Humphrey Act? How was this law attempting to protect the public?

6. What are the main purpose and influence of the Kefauver-Harris Amendment of 1962? How was this law attempting to protect the public?

7. What is the main purpose of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970?

8. List and briefly describe the 5 levels of drug scheduling under the controlled substances, schedule I-V"

9. What are the 3 main steps in regulating the development of new pharmaceutical drugs?

10. Define and describe the 2 main drug prevention strategies: Supply Reduction and Demand Reduction.