Improving Access to Cannabis in End of Life Care
By Chela Fiorini
SB-311 Compassionate Access to Medical Cannabis Act or Ryan’s Law passed the California Senate in March and was referred to the Assembly. This is a very important bill for patient access in hospitals and anywhere there are federally funded programs like Medicare or Medi-Cal.
Please call and/or write your Assembly Member and Gov. Newsom to urge them to pass this bill that would allow medical cannabis in certain medical facilities for terminally ill patients. This is really important for seniors.
Last session it passed unanimously in the legislature, but Governor Newsom vetoed it over concerns with conflicting federal policy. We cannot wait to help our loved ones. Call the Governor today. 916-445-2841 Or send him a note https://govapps.gov.ca.gov/gov40mail/
Here’s what I wrote:
“Dear Gov. Newsom –
Writing today to urge you to sign SB-311 Compassionate Access to Medical Cannabis Act or Ryan’s Law (when it comes to your desk) to help all those in hospitals, hospice and even skilled nursing facilities gain access to cannabis medicine.
Cannabis was the only medicine that ever helped ease my mom’s journey through Alzheimer’s dementia. From the time we started using it until her last breath, cannabis eased the way.
The Governor of Virginia recently signed a similar piece of legislation. We need you to lead on cannabis normalization and help seniors and others at the end of life have access to the medicines that they wish to use. Please have compassion for those at the end of life and be bold enough to sign this law.
Sincerely, Chela”
A little background on Ryan’s Law: Former Santee Mayor Jim Bartell’s 42-year-old son, Ryan, was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in early 2018 and died seven weeks later in a hospital bed in Washington State. Their experience inspired them to help craft this law that would give terminal patients a better quality of life. Here is a news story from last session, the first time they tried to pass it.