​The Colorado Department of Revenue has released 99 pages of new regulations governing medical marijuana in the state. The most concerning aspect of these new rules, according to the Boulder-based Cannabis Therapy Institute (CTI), is the invasion of patient privacy they allow.

In order to buy cannabis at a Medical Marijuana Center (the legal name for dispensaries in Colorado), patients will be forced to give up their constitutional right to confidentiality and become participants in the Colorado Medical Marijuana Patient and Medicine Tracking Database and Surveillance System, according to CTI

This new $4 million-plus database will track everything from seed to sale. This includes every time a patient enters a dispensary, including what they purchase as well as when, where and how often they purchase marijuana.

Information will be logged into the database, and video surveillance will be collected of each patient as they make their purchase. These video surveillance camera feeds will be viewable remotely by law enforcement 24/7 on demand.

The new database will replace the confidential Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment registry, and will be shared with agencies including the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Colorado Division of Labor and Employment, state and local law enforcement, and more.

“There are no security guidelines for how this information will be kept secure,” CTI said in a Monday press release. “As we have seen with WikiLeaks, it is virtually impossible to guarantee that electronic records will remain confidential.”: “This is an unprecedented assault on the Constitutional guarantee to confidentiality of medical marijuana patients in Colorado,” CTI said. “We MUST stop the state from developing this database and replacing the confidential registry.” What You Can Do 1. Send Comments You can send public comments up until and at the hearing on January 27-28. These are important, as they will become part of the official rule-making record. Click here to read the rules on the DoR Website: http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/Rev-Enforcement/RE/1251575119584 Sample comment text The new Department of Revenue rules related to video surveillance and tracking of patient purchases violate the patients’ right to confidentiality guaranteed in the Article XVIII, Section 14 of the Colorado Constitution. Send comments to: [email protected] CTI asks that you send a copy of your comments to the Cannabis Therapy Institute: [email protected] 2. Attend the Public Hearing Thursday and Friday, January 27-28, 2011 (Thurs. and Fri.) Department of Revenue Rulemaking Public Hearing 9 a.m. Jefferson County Justice Center Administration and Courts Facility Hearing Room 1 (HR 1) 100 Jefferson County Parkway Golden, CO 80419 More info can be found at:

http://www.cannabistherapyinstitute.com/legal/rules/dor/