Wilbraham woman receives first medical marijuana certification from new clinic in Springfield

Mura Bacon-Erikson, 53, of Wilbraham, is the first person ever to receive a certification for medical marijuana from MariMed Consults in Springfield. Here, Bacon-Erikson displays her "card," the document allowing her to be free from any legal consequences of personal marijuana possession. August 8, 2014.

BOSTON - Jill Osborne's 8-year-old daughter has epilepsy. Osborne wants to use medical marijuana to treat her, but three years after voters approved the use of the drug, Osborne still cannot access medical marijuana.

"There's one dispensary with two products, neither of which is the one we're looking for," Osborne said.

Osborne wants to see the state's medical marijuana caregiver program expanded. Currently, caregivers are only allowed to provide marijuana for one patient in registered hardship cases, and Osborne said it is not economical for a caregiver to grow the specific type of marijuana her daughter needs.

Osborne was one of numerous patients and family members who packed a Statehouse hearing room on Tuesday to testify before the Joint Committee on Public Health about a bill that would expand the caregiver program and make other changes to the state's medical marijuana law, which was passed by a ballot initiative in 2012.

Since 2012, problems with the licensing process have led to the opening of only a single dispensary so far, with 15 at various stages of licensing. Another 96 dispensaries have applied for licenses, under a revamped licensing process instituted under Gov. Charlie Baker that went into effect at the end of June.

The bill, H. 2065, is sponsored by State Rep. Frank Smizik, D-Brookline. As The Republican/MassLive.com reported, it would bar discrimination against medical marijuana patients and caregivers in areas of housing, employment, school admissions and child custody hearings. It would let caregivers cultivate marijuana for up to 10 patients, rather than one. It would make it easier for patients to cultivate marijuana, allow out-of-state medical marijuana patients to access the drug in Massachusetts, and protect parents using medical marijuana from sanctions by the Department of Children and Families.

Nichole Snow, executive director at the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, which supports the bill, said the current ratios for caregivers are too restrictive. "Patients need access now," Snow said. "With one dispensary open, there's not enough supply for all the patients in Massachusetts."

Steven Drury, of Templeton, said his interest is in seeing a non-discrimination clause passed. Drury is a union carpenter who takes medical marijuana to treat ulcerative colitis. Drury said as his condition improves, he wants to go back to work, but he cannot do so because drug tests catch the medical marijuana residue in his blood.

Lisa Cole, whose 6-year-old daughter has seizures, said she wants to treat her daughter with medical marijuana. But her daughter's application is still pending with the Department of Public Health because it takes longer for a child's application to get approved than an adult's. "I want to ask why they hold pediatric to a higher standard," Cole said. She too worries that her daughter will not be able to access medical marijuana because the caregiver standards are too restrictive.