UPDATE January 23, 2017

The committee hearing to add PTSD to the list of qualifying conditions for the treatment of Medical Marijuana has been POSTPONED until next Monday, January 30th. The hearing will be at 1:30 PM in Senate Committee Room 357. This postponement came at our request to give us time to sort out a last minute legislative process challenge.

If you haven’t made calls and emails, please do so. We are hearing reports of lots of calls and emails on this issue so that is great news! Please encourage folks to keep the calls and emails coming if they haven’t made them already. They are definitely helping!

Hello supporters of SB17-017, the bill to add Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress Disorder to the list of qualifying conditions for treatment with medical marijuana.

We are excited to announce that the bill has been scheduled for its first committee hearing next Tuesday, January 24^th in Senate State Affairs.  As it stands, we believe this bill will have the support it needs to come out of committee and move to the next phase of the process.   As such, the Senate bill sponsor has asked us to consider limiting testimony as is common in bills when they do not expect a controversial outcome.  While nobody can deny your right to publicly testify and tell your story, there are some tried and tested truths that come into play with legislation.  The biggest is that when you have the votes you want, you do not overwhelm the committee with testimony. This bill is currently scheduled to be the second of three bills up that morning.   They are all human. They get hungry (the committee will be before lunch), then angry, sometimes they find ways to disagree when testimony weighs on and it can put the bill at risk.

We are asking your help in reaching out and contacting the committee members by telephone and email asking for their support.  We want to show the committee the broad based support for this bill and your help in presenting a strong and positive grass roots showing before committee will build positive momentum going into committee.  We have included both telephone and e-mail contact information for the committee below for your convenience as well as some talking points for your consideration.  Please feel free to say whatever you feel is right, these are only for consideration.

In advocating for a bill there is a recipe to catching legislators’ attention:
·         The story of self – how this bill relates to you.
·         The story of us – how this bill relates to your community.
·         The story of now- what do we want you to do now? We want you to support SB 17-17.

Ideally you would not want to go more than a paragraph for each to hold their attention but say what you feel is right.  Tracking your experience with others and combining with a clear ask of what you would like is a very effective way to communicate with elected officials on proposed legislation. If you are a voter in their district, please mention that.  It helps to be polite and to acknowledge and thank them for their service.

In addition, we have created a one-page document with information and talking points that you can print or email.

Senate State Affairs Committee Capitol Contact Information

DRAFT email/phone talking points for consideration:

Dear Senator X,
I am writing today to ask your support of SB17-17, which adds Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress Disorder to the list of qualifying conditions for treatment of medical marijuana.   The bill is currently scheduled to be heard in your committee, Senate State Affairs, on Tuesday, January 24^th.

This legislation comes to you from the Interim Committee on Cost-benefit Analysis of Legalized Marijuana in Colorado. The bill adds post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and acute stress disorders to the list of debilitating medical conditions approved for using medical marijuana.  This legislation will:

• Allow individuals suffering from PTSD to have an honest conversation with their treating physician about how use of medical marijuana fits in a comprehensive treatment plan.
• Allow veterans with PTSD to participate in a state-authorized medical marijuana program as required by the Veterans Administration.
• Allow PTSD sufferers, many who live on military disability benefits and other fixes sources of income, to pay substantially less for medical marijuana than other marijuana available in the retail market place.
• Provide for access to medical marijuana strains that are not available in the retail market place.

Its time Colorado honor its Veterans and give them access to medical marijuana to treat the conditions they develop as a result of their service to our country.  It’s time to add PTSD and acute stress disorders to the list of approved-conditions.

Please support SB17-17 to add Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress Disorder to the list of qualifying conditions for treatment of medical marijuana in Senate State Affairs.

Sincerely,
YOUR NAME & ADDRESS

**Thank you to Hoban Law Group for your help on this.**

Cannabis Patients Alliance is working hard to change hearts and minds one conversation at a time. We can’t do it alone. We need your support! Please DONATE NOW or BECOME AN ALLY so we can continue this important work.

Categories: ACTION!, Colorado, Policy & Politics, Veterans

Tags: Colorado, medical marijuana, medicinal cannabis, ptsd, veterans