Science & Technology

Michigan Considers Allowing Medical Marijuana into Pharmacies

Legislators propose a bill

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Five years after Michigan voters legalized marijuana use for medical purposes, lawmakers say it's time the drug is brought into the fold of the health care industry so patients can buy it at their corner pharmacy.

A bill approved last week by a Senate committee would pave the way for the production and sale of "pharmaceutical-grade" cannabis. The measure essentially would create a second medical pot system in the state, one that proponents say would not interfere with the existing law under which patients can grow their own pot or obtain it from caregivers.

"Marijuana, if it's to be medical marijuana, should be held to the standard of medical safety, dosage predictability," said Sen. Roger Kahn, a Saginaw Township Republican and cardiologist. "Our medical marijuana (law) does neither of those. Yet it uses the word the word `medical' predominantly or prominently in its claims."