HolyCoast: Smoke Pot, Lose a Transplant
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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Smoke Pot, Lose a Transplant

I've got a problem with this story, but probably not what you think:
It’s not exactly a death panel, but one Los Angeles hospital has apparently decided that the lives of marijuana users are not as valuable as the lives of others.

Legally smoking marijuana for medical reasons can get you taken off Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s transplant lists, The Huffington Post reports.

Toni Trujillo was on the hospital’s kidney transplant list for six years when she was told she had been removed from the list for “substance abuse.”

Trujillo has been smoking marijuana legally, using the drug for two years to stimulate her appetite. This helped her increase and maintain protein levels while on dialysis.
Here's my problem - there's no such thing as legal marijuana use in California. Yes, the state passed a Medical Marijuana law some years ago, but under Federal law which supersedes state law, marijuana use is still a federal crime. The fact that the Feds refuse to enforce the law is irrelevant.

Therefore, marijuana use is never legal in California and if the hospital decides to take people off the transplant list for illegal activity, that should be their right.

3 comments:

Nightingale said...

The smoke from marijuana does at least the same damage to lungs (and hearts) that cigarette smoking does. And probably worse due to the way MJ is smoked: hot carcinogenic gases inhaled deeply and held longer. That alone would make the patient a worse surgical risk.

The whole idea of justifying marijuana use just kills me. Here we have someone with End Stage Renal Disease damaging their lungs to improve their appetite? Brilliant.

And have you ever met a razor-sharp pot smoker??? There's a reason they call it dope.

Underdog said...

Entirely too advanced logical/critical thinking skills on display, Rick.

Marijuana use is prohibited due to FEDERAL law. California passes state law endorsing the use of "Medical Marijuana." Feds don't enforce their own Federal law in California.

So are the Feds gonna Make Cedars-Sinai obey California State law? Methinks not! Hey, the Feds are ignoring California on this issue hugely.

Cedars will most likely win in court should this be litigated. . . and you can bet your bottom dollar it will. It's entirely Cedars' right to deny this person a transplant. It's their hospital, their waiting list, and their medical procedures and policies that fall within the accepted medical standards. The State of California needs to butt out of the issue. Go to another hospital or state or country if you don't like what Cedars says.

Kudos to Nightingale for pointing out the medical aspects of smoking dope. What is medically true cannot be wished away.

Sam L. said...

Marijuana laws and immigration laws are raaaaacist! That's why Holder's agin enforcin' 'em.