Episode 71 of Utah in the Weeds features former state Representative Brad Daw, who was instrumental in establishing Utah’s Medical Cannabis program.
Mr. Daw told us about the launch of his political career back in 2004, and the clash with local payday lenders that temporarily cost him his seat in the Utah House of Representatives in 2012. [01:32]
After regaining his seat in 2014, Daw began working on a number of political issues, including prescription drug abuse, election transparency, affordable and accessible healthcare, and, of course, Medical Marijuana. [02:20]
Daw shared some of his conservative beliefs about small government, taxes, and finding cross-party governmental solutions in the least intrusive manner. [02:56]
Daw and host Tim Pickett talked about CBD, “Charlotte’s Web” and the paradigm shift that began to bring Medical Cannabis to the attention of Utah lawmakers. [05:11]
Toward the end of Utah’s 2014 legislative session, Daw and Sen. Evan Vickers began working on a plan to grant access to Medical Marijuana for those with legitimate medical needs. [09:36]
Daw talked about the “thoroughly-mocked” right-to-try law that allowed terminally-ill patients to grow and use cannabis with THC. He also talked about the proliferation of CBD, and his own use of CBD as a sleep aid. [12:14]
Some past and present members of the Utah Legislature, including Daw, have resisted legalizing raw cannabis flower for medical use. Tim and Daw talked about some of the reasons for that resistance, and Daw’s current stance on the subject. [16:47]
Tim and Daw talked about some of the challenges legislators in Utah and other states have faced in establishing Medical Marijuana programs. They went over the ballot initiative and the compromise bill that makes cannabis available for a broader range of patients in Utah. [19:30]
States with Medical Cannabis programs have quite a lot of regulations to consider. In Utah, every Medical Cannabis patient must meet with a pharmacist at least once before purchasing cannabis from a pharmacy. Daw feels regulations like these are critical to the successful implementation of cannabis as a legitimate medicine. Daw also explained why cannabis isn’t taxed in Utah. [28:06]
We wrapped up the episode with a brief discussion of what’s next for Mr. Daw. [43:36]
This episode is full of great information on the history of Medical Marijuana in Utah. Daw gave us some unique insight into the Utah Legislature’s decisions and processes that resulted in a successful Medical Cannabis program.
Resources in This Episode
Follow the podcast at UtahMarijuana.org.
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Discover Marijuana.
Follow our Instagram page, utah_marijuana_org.
source
