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Recent RIPAC and medical marijuana news:
6/16/09: Today the General Assembly overrode the Governor's veto: the 2009 Medical Marijuana Act is LAW!! Click to read how the law changed this year.
6/12/09: Today Governor Donald Carcieri vetoed the medical marijuana bills. RIPAC calls on the General Assembly to override his veto as soon as possible.
6/9/09: Today the Senate Health & Human Services committee unanimously approved the final version of the compassion center bill, and the full Senate passed the bill 31-2, sending it to the Governor!
6/7/09: Today's Providence Journal has an amazingly moving profile of Representative Thomas Slater that touches on his years of fighting for medical marijuana patients.
6/3/09: Tonight the House voted 64-4, passing S0185, the Senate's compassion center bill - the Senate can next consider the House's bill, and send it to the Governor.
5/27/09: Tonight the House HEW cmte passed the Senate mmj bill S0185 10-0!
5/20/09: Today the House voted 63-5 to pass medical marijuana compassion center bill H5359! See stories in The ProJo, The Daily News, and The Call.
5/18/09: Please welcome new RIPAC Executive Director Stephen Hogan!
4/30/09: Today the House Health Edu & Welfare committee passed H5359 8-0!
4/29/09: Tonight the Senate approved the compassion center bill 35-2! The Senates of New Hampshire and Minnesota also passed medical marijuana bills.
4/22/09: Tonight the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services voted UNANIMOUSLY 8-0 in favor of S0185 on medical marijuana compassion centers! After the vote, the Providence Journal posted the good news right away.
4/20/09: Tonight the RI Psychiatric Society endorsed medical marijuana!
3/18/09: Today New Mexico issued its 1st license to a non-profit mmj producer! We hope RI will be the 2nd state to license non-profit distributors.
3/5/09: Last night the medical marijuana compassion center bill was heard by legislative committees in the Senate and House of Representatives. You can read excellent coverage in The Providence Journal and The Woonsocket Call and watch videos of patients' testimony at YouTube.com/RIpatientsDotOrg.
2/25/09: At a Justice Department press conference, Attorney General Eric Holder said that ending raids on medical marijuana dispensaries "is now American policy." You can watch the video on YouTube!
Feb 2009: This year's bills are out! On Feb 4, Sen. Rhoda Perry introduced S0185, and on Feb 10, Rep. Tom Slater introduced H5359. 50 of RI's 75 state representatives are co-sponsors of H5359! Watch for hearing dates in March...
6/2/08: The Providence Journal published an Op-Ed by RIPAC ED Jesse Stout and mentioned our radio ads in Political Scene. June's Providence Monthly has this great photo essay on medical marijuana: "Searching for Relief."
5/2/08: A new poll says 69% of Rhode Islanders support Compassion Centers.
9/9/07: The Sunday Providence Journal featured a major article about RIPAC members Kelly Powers, Rhonda O'Donnell, Denis Dubois, Emelie Archibald, and Bobbie Ebert. This story is a turning point for medical marijuana in RI, read it here! A follow-up letter-to-the-editor by RIPAC member Bill Cotton appeared in the Sunday Providence Journal on September 16; here it is.
Rhode Island Medical Marijuana Act
On January 3, 2006, the Rhode Island General Assembly overrode Governor Carcieri’s veto, protecting patients and passing the RI Medical Marijuana Act, or:
The Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Act
“to protect patients with debilitating medical conditions, and their physicians and primary caregivers, from arrest and prosecution, criminal and other penalties ... if such patients engage in the medical use of marijuana.”
The Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Act
“to protect patients with debilitating medical conditions, and their physicians and primary caregivers, from arrest and prosecution, criminal and other penalties ... if such patients engage in the medical use of marijuana.”
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