Marijuana Legalization Threatens Survival Of Compassionate Care Programs That Helped Seriously Ill Patients
Under new state regulations, compassionate care programs must collect taxes on the market value of cannabis that they give to patients. But many of the programs say they cannot afford the taxes.
Sacramento Bee:
Low-Cost Medical Marijuana Threatened By California Legalization
The Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana survived a raid by federal agents and other existential threats while providing free and low-cost cannabis to seriously ill patients. In operation for the past three decades, the Santa Cruz-based collective is the oldest example of a "compassionate care" program in the nation. Now, the program and others like it could be forced to close due to an unlikely reason: legalization. (Branan, 3/5)
In other public health news —
KPCC:
Is Orange County Turning The Corner On Homelessness?
In April 2017, federal Judge David O. Carter marched through the 2-mile-long homeless encampment stretched out along the Santa Ana River flood control channel in the heart of Orange County and declared, “No one’s got good answers to this." But nearly a year and several lawsuits later, a wave of efforts to reduce chronic homelessness is sweeping through Orange County, making a once-elusive goal seem reachable. (Replogle, 3/5)