If the Brandon Coats court case had turned out differently, Dr. Margaret Gedde's medical marijuana patients would have been talking about it.

But he lost. So they said nothing.

It was what they all feared anyway, Gedde said.

Coats, a 34-year-old quadriplegic whose doctor prescribed medical marijuana to stop his muscle spasms, recently lost his wrongful termination suit against Dish Network, which fired him in 2010 for testing positive for THC, the chemical in marijuana. Medical and recreational marijuana are both legal in Colorado, where Coats lives and works, but it's against Dish's national company policy. He said he was using it off-duty, but it didn't matter.

After more than a decade of study, researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital are close to developing a new class of non-narcotic drugs that relieve chronic nerve pain by targeting a protein that enhances pain and inflammation.

Their findings, reported in the journal Neuron, could lead to new treatments for diabetic peripheral neuropathy, post-herpetic neuralgia, and inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis. Current treatments provide meaningful pain relief in only about 15 percent of patients.

The evolution of the cannabis market in Canada continues to be a crucial case study. There is a lot we can learn about how business models are taking shape and the headwinds being faced in the legalized medical environment that the Canadian MMPR provides.

Visual Capitalist recently released a report that takes a snapshot of the current MMPR market at the end of April. The combination of surveys, reviews, and independent data collection is a launching point for a look at Canada’s licensed producers, its patients, and the current product offerings for consumers.

I just wrote and sent a letter to Vancouver's mayor and council members, as well as to our education minister and I'm sharing it here.

In Vancouver, medical marijuana clinics have been popping up by the dozens. However, the ease of obtaining marijuana has resulted in it being used and abused by those who don't need it for medicinal reasons, and now many families are dealing with the ramifications of marijuana addiction in their children.

If you would like to write letters of your own to your elected officials and to those who educate your children, I strongly urge you to do so. Your voice needs to be heard.

June 18, 2015

Dear Minister of Education: Province of British Columbia Hon. Peter Fassbender:

In our last “Your opinion” article we asked for our readerships views on the topic of “cannabis smoking moms”. This subject is quite controversial. There are those that say cannabis and parenthood don’t mix, and those that say having a joint at night is not any different from enjoying a glass of wine. Critics say that parents who smoke cannabis are putting their kids at risk. Even cannabis users raise their voices by saying that moms should not partake in smoking cannabis.

There is a lot of chatter happening at City Hall this month about medicinal-marijuana dispensaries. A public hearing that began June 10 reconvenes on Monday (June 22), when speaker number 173 will take the microphone at a meeting beginning at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, a group called Smart Approaches to Marijuana Canada (SAM Canada) has emerged as a vocal opponent to the city’s proposed regulatory framework for the over-the-counter sale of cannabis. Pamela McColl, a Vancouver-based member of the national group’s advisory council, told the Straight her organization is more than just talk.

“We have a lot of lawyers looking at this whole thing,” McColl said.

In a statement on June 11, Canadian health minister Rona Ambrose reacted strongly to the Supreme Court ruling that medical cannabis should be available in all forms to patients using it for medical purposes. Not only is Ambrose “outraged”, she believes that it sends a message of normalization to Canadian youth and that there is no clear evidence on the efficacy of cannabis for medical purposes.

But she’s wrong.

It’s troubling that the health minister of Canada, a voice that is suppose to serve the public health interest of Canadians, still cannot admit that cannabis can be, and is, used for a variety of medical purposes.

This trend, which contradicts growing global trends and public debate in Israel, has led many to question whether the Health Ministry is colluding with pharmaceutical companies. 

For Eitan, 25, medical cannabis is nothing short of a miracle. He's been using it for quite some time now to combat the nausea, vomiting, excruciating pain and weight loss caused by the pancreatic cancer he suffers from. "Without the cannabis, I honestly cannot function," he says.

The demand for medicinal cannabis is rising, with Hemp Embassy volunteers urging people to make their own.

By Darren Coyne

North Coast growers involved in the production of medicinal cannabis should be granted an amnesty from prosecution given the widespread use and growing acceptance of the plant’s medicinal qualities, according to the Nimbin Hemp Embassy.

Hemp Embassy president Michael Balderstone today welcomed an announcement that Southern Cross University in Lismore would be conducting research into medicinal cannabis, but said those at the coalface – growers, suppliers and users – continued to be persecuted.

At a Friday press conference in Mangilao, officials from Guam’s Public Health department present what they learned during a trip to Arizona and California to research medical marijuana laws. From left: Cynthia Naval, planner IV; Michelle Razo Lastimoza, environmental public health officer III; and Rosanna Rabago, environmental public health officer.(Photo: Maria Hernandez/PDN)

A three-person team from the island's public health department visited Arizona for about a month to learn more about the state's medical marijuana program, which Guam will be using as a foundation for its own program.