The Long Beach is still trying to understand the legal issues relating medical marijuana. These laws are confusing and dizzying for city officials who wish to regulate medical marijuana collectives, dispensaries and cooperatives.
In California these laws are not accepted and medical marijuana is not legalized. Instead California's reserved powers are exercised to not punish certain marijuana offences. After the implementation of these laws people are curious if they have some legal ways to regulate these co-operations, dispensaries and collectives. The answer to their queries is that the collectives and cooperatives can be regulated because they work as a resource for caregivers and patients. In order to regulate, the cooperatives have to get themselves incorporated by filing articles with the state and collectives are allowed to cultivate marijuana but procurement from other vendors is not allowed. However dispensaries are made totally illegal. But regulating dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives requires a very careful study.
The organizations only receive recommendations from doctors to use long beach medical marijuana. They do not even receive prescriptions, yet they are considered caregivers for patients. Although Doctors and patients have confidentiality under the law, but the law itself is not clear on what kind of confidentiality caregivers have. So it would be very difficult to determine if the patients are abusing the system. A summit held by District Attorney Steve Cooley also said that dispensaries are illegal and should be prosecuted. The Long Beach should not regulate them. The sales all over the country have been made illegal. Hence the committee could not reach to a solution.
Various issues like pot dispensaries which distribute marijuana filled food, be inspected by Health Department. Other issues included regulation of operation of adult businesses and liquor stores. Many regulations were put on them like when they could open and in what areas. But limiting the location, created a concern among some of the members of committee. They felt that by limiting locations, the organizations which are actually helping people would create a negative connotation against these organizations.
If given a consideration, one would agree that regulating illegal business is good but cooperatives and collectives is a necessity. It is a resource for sick people. In spite of all regulations, Medical Marijuana is allowed to provide relief in case of arthritis, cancer, chronic pain, migraines, anorexia, AIDS and glaucoma. A person can use marijuana legally after being evaluated by a physician. And on a physician’s recommendation, a person can be cured with medicinal marijuana.
