Media Advisory: Is Texas ready for medical marijuana?

MEDIA ADVISORY

David Ruth
713-348-6327
david@rice.edu

Is Texas ready for medical marijuana?
Baker Institute panel to address topic Nov. 12

HOUSTON – (Nov. 4, 2014) – William Martin, director of the drug policy program and senior fellow in religion and public policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute of Public Policy, will host a panel Nov. 12 on whether the Texas is ready to accept marijuana as a form of medical treatment.

The 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. discussion of the therapeutic promise and legislative possibility for medical marijuana in Texas will feature an experienced legal grower and dispensary operator from New Mexico, a physician, a Baker Institute drug policy expert, a veteran Texas legislator, as well as both user and non-user advocates and activists.

During the 2015 legislative session, Texas lawmakers will consider one or more bills that would permit legal use of marijuana in the treatment of approved medical conditions. For many years, a majority of Texans have supported some form of legal access to medical marijuana, according to Martin. Currently, 23 states and the District of Columbia have medical marijuana programs, but they differ widely on such matters as the range of conditions qualifying for treatment, the ease of obtaining permits for use and the right to grow one’s own medical marijuana.

Who:  Host: William Martin, the Harry and Hazel Chavanne Senior Fellow in Religion and Public Policy at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy.

Speakers include:

Terri Davis Carriker, advocate for families of children with epilepsy.

Amy Lou Fawell, president, Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana For Autism (MAMMA).

Vincent Lopez, director of patient outreach, Texas chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML); founder, Patient Alliance for Cannabis Therapeutics

Leslie Grady McAhren, executive director and director of research, CG Corrigan.

Rep. Elliott Naishtat, Texas State Representative, District 49.

Katharine A. Neill, the Alfred C. Glassell III Postdoctoral Fellow in Drug Policy, Baker Institute.

Jeronimo Saldana, coordinator, Movement Building Team, Drug Policy Alliance.

Neeraj Shah, physician, Seton Medical Center.

                        What:             Conference to discuss if Texas is ready for medical marijuana.

When:            Wednesday, Nov. 12, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where:           Rice University, James A. Baker III Hall, Kelly International Conference Facility, 6100 Main St.

Members of the news media who want to attend should RSVP to David Ruth, director of national media relations at Rice, at 713-348-6327 or david@rice.edu.

Admission is free, but the public must register to attend the event at http://bakerinstitute.org/events/register/1680/?submit=RSVP.

For a map of Rice University’s campus with parking information, go to www.rice.edu/maps.

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Baker Institute Houston Chronicle blog “Viewpoint” by Katharine Neill:

“The cannabis industry: Growing pains for now, but success will come“

Follow the Baker Institute via Twitter @BakerInsitute.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,920 undergraduates and 2,567 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just over 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life by the Princeton Review and for best value among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. To read “What they’re saying about Rice,” go here.