Date:

Dear Physician,

Maritimers Unite for Medical Marijuana Society (MUMM) is a registered non-profit organization, advocating and lobbying for the rights of medicinal marijuana patients, cultivators and distributors including compassion clubs and societies, particularly in Atlantic Canada through legislative strategies, media campaigns, and non-violent direct action while endeavoring to educate others about the relative safety of medical marijuana.

Across Canada doctors are realizing the benefits of medical marijuana and recommending their patients this therapy with great success. Recent research on using medical marijuana to deal with long term pain sufferers proved to be successful (Smoked cannabis for chronic neuropathic pain: a randomized controlled trial; Ware, M., et al, CMAJ • October 5, 2010;
182 (14).). 0ther studies are proving the use of marijuana greatly reduces the secondary symptoms and side-effects seen in other patients who are taking opiates or other addictive pharmaceuticals.

The most common complaint about Health Canada’s medical marijuana program that we receive is from ill Canadians who want to use cannabis legally for medical purposes, yet are unable to find a doctor or specialist to complete the necessary paperwork.

If you sign Health Canada’s Medical Marihuana Access forms thus allowing your patients to try medical marijuana as an alternative, you are helping them into the only legal program that allows them to be exempt from the criminal code of Canada for their medical need. Without this
protection, patients can face criminal charges, be convicted and even incarcerated for possessing or producing their medicine. This can be an extremely stressful situation for a critically, chronically ill patient and their family.

For the sake of your patients, if you haven’t already had an opportunity to do so, we strongly encourage you to be open to learning first hand the medical benefits of marijuana and the exemption process. We have taken the liberty of enclosing MUMM’s Physician Kit CD for you which may help answer some of your questions.

If you would like to discuss the medical marijuana exemption process for existing patients, or if you are accepting new patients, please contact us. With your permission, MUMM would be glad to discretely advise needy, deserving patients in your area that you are accepting new patients.
I am available for consultation via email: patientadvocate@mumm.ca or by mail (see above).

You may also reach Debbie Stultz-Giffin, MUMM chair at 902-665-2355.
On behalf of the Patient Advocacy Committee I would like to thank you for your time.

Yours truly,
David Shea,
Patient Advocacy Committee Chair