The Economics Tutor

Nowhere in the United States is medical cannabis more accessible than right here in Florida, according to several recent reports from major outlets from across the country. The Miami New Times writes that even though the state legislature has done everything in its power to push back on the program, Florida’s medical cannabis market is the fastest-growing in the country. By the numbers, there are already more than 200,000 people enrolled in the program, with an estimated 10,000 new patients signing up every month. That’s a lot of people finding relief from medical cannabis! According to the Miami New Times, however, the story isn’t the same everywhere. In other states with a medical cannabis program, places like New York and Arizona, the numbers are not quite as high, even though, at least in New York, they have just as many doctors who will recommend the treatment. David Kotler, a South Florida attorney who founded the Medical Marijuana Business Lawyers, LLC told the Miami New Tim...

Last month Rep. Alex Mooney of West Virginia filed a bill in Congress which, if passed, would allow medical cannabis patients to own firearms legally. It would be a big step forward for patients in the medical cannabis community, as current federal law disqualifies patients if they’re  “an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance.” In other words, since cannabis is still considered to be illegal at the federal level, the government bans medical cannabis users from owning guns, even though the state of Florida has legalized the drug. According to a recent report in Marijuana Moment , Mooney’s new bill would carve out exceptions for medical marijuana patients, in essence giving them back the full and lawful rights that they deserve. The bill’s language states that illegal drug users cannot purchase firearms, “except that an individual shall not be treated as an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance based on the individual using marihuana for a med...