We heard from Bob Ream, a former Montana legislator battling terminal cancer, about how marijuana helps him sleep.

Katie Mazurek, a young wife and mother in Bozeman, shared her story of being unable to access marijuana legally for lack of a provider. Mazurek is in the fight of her life against advanced breast cancer.

I-182 would add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of diseases for which medical marijuana can be recommended by a licensed physician and legally used by a registered card holder. The addition of PTSD is of particular concern for Montana veterans who returned from war with the invisible wounds of this disorder.

If voters approve I-182, marijuana will still be illegal in Montana. Use of the drug will only be legal under the medical conditions it was back in August — with the addition of PTSD.

The question on the Nov. 8 ballot is basically whether Montanans want state law to keep small quantities of marijuana legally available to Montanans with pain, nausea, insomnia and other suffering from serious disorders. If your answer is yes, vote for I-182.

We aren’t encouraging anyone to use marijuana, but compassion prompts us to say that, for some seriously ill people, marijuana may be a better alternative than prescription painkillers. If their doctor advises that marijuana may ease pain, seizures or nausea, we don’t want to deny that option to Montanans suffering with cancer and other debilitating illnesses.

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