Petitions filed to allow medical marijuana use in Missouri

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The first step to put medical marijuana to a statewide vote next year came Thursday, with supporters filing initiative petitions with the Missouri secretary of state.

The two petitions from pro-medical marijuana group New Approach Missouri, would ask voters whether to amend the state constitution to allow physicians to recommend the drug to patients with certain illnesses, such as cancer, epilepsy and post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as "any other chronic, debilitating or otherwise equivalent condition."

Patients with the proper approval who follow new state rules for using pot, such as only possessing a limited amount, would be shielded from criminal and civil penalties under state law.

While 23 states and the District of Columbia permit medical marijuana and four states have legalized recreational use of the drug, marijuana still is forbidden under federal law. This is the latest of several attempts at medical marijuana by supporters in Missouri in recent years, which opponents say could negatively affect public safety.

The measures make the state Department of Health and Senior Services responsible for regulating the drug and creating rules for its production and use. Using marijuana in public or while driving still would be barred.

The proposed 6 percent sales tax on medical pot and fees for medical marijuana manufacturers, dispensaries and growers would go to an earmarked fund for health care for veterans.

New Approach Missouri is touting medical marijuana as a needed option for people such as Sheila Dundon, a registered nurse from Columbia who previously had breast cancer and is married to one of the leaders behind the current push. Dundon, who filed one of the petitions Thursday, said she used pot to help deal with the effects of cancer treatment and "could not believe how it helped" with symptoms such as nausea and loss of appetite.

Others argue allowing medical marijuana could have negative public safety implications, such as increased drug use by minors and driving while high. National Narcotic Officers' Associations' Coalition vice president Jason Grellner added that medical marijuana could be the first step toward full-blown recreational legalization.

Grellner said law enforcement, those involved with drug rehabilitation, educators, clergy and others are organizing to form a group to oppose the initiative petition push.

Democratic Secretary of State Jason Kander must first approve the petitions, and then supporters will have to gather enough signatures for the measures to go on the November 2016 ballot.

Efforts to legalize medical and recreational marijuana failed in 2012 and 2014. This time, New Approach Missouri has hired a prominent consultant and has started fundraising to pay for a signature-gathering campaign. Both actions could give the proposals a better chance of going before voters.