State government authority and policy is driven by laws that are established by the Legislature and carried out by the Governor through the Executive Branch. Sometimes laws are passed directly by the voters (called a voter initiative). Many state laws require state agencies to develop regulations to “flesh out” the laws they pass by giving state agencies “Rulemaking” authority to provide the details. The Rulemaking process is governed by the Arizona Administrative Procedure Act. Some laws (like the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act) allow agency directors to modify laws on their own, and then follow up later with rule changes.
Sometimes state agencies decide that the Rules they’ve adopted can use some extra clarification to help people understand them better. Agencies can develop what are called Substantive Policy Statements – which advise the public about the procedures the agency will follow as they interpret and implement the rules that they’ve officially adopted.
You can think of state laws as the “skeleton”, agency rules as the “muscle and other tissue”, and a substantive policy statement as an “outfit”.
For example, this week we filed a Substantive Policy Statement clarifying my Decision to authorize medical marijuana for registered patients that are currently undergoing conventional treatment for PTSD beginning January 1. Certifying physicians will be required to attest that they have reviewed evidence documenting that the patient is currently undergoing conventional treatment for PTSD before signing the medical marijuana certification.
The new Substantive Policy Statement provides the public with clarification of our interpretation of what constitutes treatment for PTSD, allowing a qualifying patient to get a medical marijuana registry identification card. The Statement clarifies that treatment could include, but isn’t limited to, psychotherapy (counseling); participation in support groups to help the qualifying patient feel less isolated or alone; or the use of medications to help the qualifying patient with reducing depression, relaxing, or sleeping.
The truth is we voted to legalize marijuana to reduce the crime and violence associated with illegal marijuana and to make marijuana available for medical use. This was based on 5,000 years of history. Will Humble and his policing for profit and addiction industry gang have fought the use of medical marijuana for decades. Marijuana competes with the pain and depression medication that the Arizona Department of Health is so heavily invested in.
Mr. Humble has forced critically ill patients to buy “their drugs” from costly dispensaries that produce artificially cultivated marijuana for high profits. The AZDHS accumulated millions of dollars without authorization and they disingenuously claim the electorate did not want the citizens cultivating their own medicine. Cultivation is the key to reducing the violence and crime associated with marijuana use. Cultivation is what would have brought the price of marijuana down so low that kids would not be killing each other in parks over marijuana prices that quadrupled in the 4yrs since Will Humble and the AZDHS got their hands on Arizona’s Cannabis Cash Cow.
I went through the Administrative Protection Hearing the State has set up to launder tax money and get away with murder.
It is time to hold the State administrators that have taken it upon themselves to over-regulate the medical marijuana program into the ground to tell us “we told ya so about pot” is unacceptable. People died and suffered while the AZDHS accumulated over $9,000,000 on the backs of critically ill patients and ignored the will of the electorate again. We voted for medical marijuana in 1996 with a margin of 65% and we have been ignored by the AZDHS and our Policing for Profit and Addiction Industry State for 18 years.
Enough unnecessary pain, suffering, death and chaos because our state government refuses to give up the Cannabis Cultivation Cash Cow.
Mr Humble,
I ask that you also set up additional educational material for dispensary’s for patient’s that have PTSD.
Mr Humble I also ask that you work with hospital’s so when patient’s have a diagnosis of PTSD or other mental illness we provide additional educational material on D/c automatically.Much like when like we give for a cluster headaches,Flu and common cold.We gives patient’s resources for help.
Educational material will concern resources for patient’s that do not have internet.Crisis lines number’s and resources such as Magellan,Teros,Community Bridges and Jewish Family services.
I also ask that you fix the broken mental health care system here in AZ.Patient’s should not have to wait 1 1/2 for a eval session and then wait 2 months for Psych Dr to issue medicine as well.
Primary care Dr’s will not issue medicine for PTSD they will refer you to Psych Dr.Primary care and ER Dr’s will not take the risk to issue medicine due to some Psych med causing suicidal ideation.I know from exp I have battled for a 1 year now finally getting help I need.
You should not be at place where your a threat to self or other’s before you get help.I ask that you work with community and take care of this issue so people and loved one’s do not lose there life.
Mr Humble I thank you again for adding PTSD to list of qualifications.Now patient’s and DR’s can start to remove the stigma attached to PTSD and Cannabis as medicine along with therapy here in AZ.