IGAR, Lawrence L.

ChEng 4A
PARANTAR, Brett C. ENGL23
PILONGO, Hazel B.

ARP Outline

Research Question: Should medical marijuana be decriminalized in the Philippines?

I. Introduction

(Thesis Statement: The use of medical marijuana should be decriminalized in the Philippines to
provide optimal care mainly to patients suffering from serious and debilitating diseases, to open
possibilities to further researches, and to unlock a new industry for the economy.)

II. Background Information

Medicinal Marijuana refers to the utilization of the newly-harvested, unprocessed marijuana plant or its
primary extracts to cure symptoms of diseases and other conditions. It possesses more than a hundred
various chemical compounds referred to as cannabinoids. There are also a lot of therapeutic and medical
claims as to how medicinal marijuana cures diseases such as Alzheimers Disease, loss of appetite, cure
of glaucoma, nausea, pain and etc. A bill legalizing medical marijuana was cleared for debate in the
Philippine Congress. The said bill was first introduced in 2014, but failed. It was then revived on 2016,
the day before the President launched his war on drugs. He even expressed in his 2016 campaign that he
supports the proposition, but then there must be a vivid definition of what medical marijuana is and it
must be approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the Philippines.
III. First of all, medical marijuana has the ability to provide optimal care to patients suffering
from serious and debilitating diseases.

Haynes (2016) wrote, "Debilitating diseases come in many shapes and forms. The attacks from a
debilitating disease may stem from attacking the muscles in the body, affecting normal physical
abilities as well as affecting the function of the brain, which then affects the thought process.
People with debilitating diseases face multitude of different challenges, which may have a
devastating toll on their health as well as financially. The health effects usually are measured as
life years gained (LYG) or they are also titles as quality adjusted life years (QALY)."

Herald Editorial Board (2017) stated, Medical marijuana shows considerable promise in
reducing chronic pain from a widespread number of causes, including cancer, spinal cord injury
and disease, severe spasms, post-traumatic stress disorder, nausea, glaucoma, Parkinsons and
other debilitating ailments. The drug could prove useful in other applications if patients are
allowed to use it."
I. Also, medical Marijuana opens possibilities for further researches.

Rescheduling cannabis as Schedule II will allow the research to get done that needs to be done
to determine if this is going to be a good medicine, and for what, said Patel (2016), who has
been researching cannabis for 15 years.

Burns (2017) writes, The substantial layers of bureaucracy that emerge from cannabiss
Schedule I categorization is reported to have discouraged a number of cannabis researchers from
applying for grant funding or pursing additional research efforts. Given the many gaps in the
research of the health effects of cannabis and cannabinoids, there is need to address these
regulatory barriers so that researchers will be better able to address key public health questions
about the therapeutic and adverse effects of cannabis and cannabinoid use.

I. Finally, when proven advantageous for medicinal purposes, it will be a gateway to a new and
booming industry in the Philippines.

These numbers confirm that cannabis is a major economic driver and job-creation engine for
the U.S. economy. While we see a potential drop in total number of U.S. jobs created in 2017, as
reported by Kiplinger, as well as an overall expected drop in GDP growth, the cannabis industry
continues to be a positive contributing factor to growth at a time of potential decline. We expect
the cannabis industrys growth to be slowed down to some degree in the next three to five
years, however with projected total market sales to exceed $24 billion by 2025, and the
possibility of almost 300,000 jobs by 2020, it remains a positive economic force in the U.S. said
De Carcer, Founder and CEO of New Frontier Data.

The governments and the programs that they've instilled into these [legalized] states have
created great job opportunities and excellent business opportunities for entrepreneurs, said
Mark Lustig, Chief Executive Officer of Canna Royalty.

I. Consequently, frequent use of marijuana can lead to abusive actions and risk of addiction.

Lapey (1997) stated, "Marijuana is not the safe drug portrayed by the marijuana lobby. It is
addictive; it adversely affects the immune system; leads to the use of other drugs such as
cocaine; is linked to cases of cancer; causes respiratory diseases, mental disorders, including
psychosis, depression, panic attacks, hallucinations, paranoia, decreased cognitive performance,
 disconnected thought, delusions, and impaired memory."

Hotakainen (2013) wrote, "Researchers found that marijuana was the most popular drug used by
men whod been arrested in all the cities, ranging from a low of 37 percent in Atlanta to a high of
58 percent in Chicago. Chicago also had the highest overall positive test results, with 86 percent
of the men found to have at least one drug in their bloodstreams."

I. However, there is a proposed bill that regulates the use of dangerous drugs only for
treatment and medication of patients with debilitating medical conditions.

"Once enacted, the law will establish under the Department of Health a Medical Cannabis
Regulatory Authority that will regulate the medical use of cannabis in the country. The agency
will issue registered identification cards to qualified patients as well as maintain a registry of
cannabis patients' caregivers who will assist registered qualified patients. The bill also proposes a
Medical Cannabis Compassionate Center and Medical Cannabis Safety Compliance Facilities."
wrote Geronimo (2014).

"The bill prohibits the possession and smoking of cannabis, and the use of marijuana for non-
medical purposes. It also prohibits using medical marijuana in public and driving a vehicle under
the influence of marijuana. Under the bill, the government should legalize and regulate the
medical use of cannabis which has been confirmed to have beneficial and therapeutic uses to
treat chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition wrote Cayabyab (2014).

I. On the other hand, there are other medicinal plants that are not included in the list of
dangerous drugs that we can focus and have our further researches.

Theres an aromatic plant which offers an alternative that rival those of medical marijuana
treatment, without the side effects or the necessity for a prescription. This same medicinal plant
also protects against inflammation, stress, and even radiation poisoning, said Dr. Singh.

US Food and Drug Administration (2014) stated, "Marijuana is listed in schedule I of the
Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the most restrictive schedule. The Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA), which administers the CSA, continues to support that placement and FDA
concurred because marijuana met the three criteria for placement in Schedule I under 21 U.S.C.
 812(b)(1) (e.g., marijuana has a high potential for abuse, has no currently accepted medical use
in treatment in the United States, and has a lack of accepted safety for use under medical
supervision).

I. Nonetheless, researchers already have a head start on marijuana regarding its therapeutic
claims unlike other medicinal plants wherein their potentials are yet to be discovered.

Pres. Duterte stated, Medicinal marijuana, yes, because it is really an ingredient of modern
medicine now. There are drugs right now being developed or already in the market that (have)
marijuana as a component.

National Institute of Drug Abuse (2016) wrote, Research on therapeutic uses of marijuana or of
specific chemicals in the marijuana plant for other diseases and conditions is supported by other
components of the National Institute of Health (NIH) as is appropriate to their mission.

I. Another problem is that normalizing the selling and usage of Marijuana in the Philippines
will trigger the tendency of abuse just for recreational use and will, therefore, defeat the
countrys purpose on war against dangerous drugs.

On a socio-political level: Legalization sends a wrong message to public, especially to the youth,
that marijuana is medically benevolent and not a harmful drug. The state cannot afford to risk
our society to the dangers of increased marijuana use by implying a stance that it is not
harmful, said Fabella (2015).

This country has a problem with strict and faithful implementation of government policies and
regulations. What guarantee do we have that a seriously addictive drug could be regulated when
simple regulations on tobacco and alcohol products prove to be impossible to impose? Once
marijuana is legalized, there is no possibility of regulating it, explained Bana (2015).

I. But upon approval of its selling and use for medicinal purposes and for further researches,
for the purpose of regulation, the Government shall put a cap on the manufacturers and
traders that it must be limited to the said purpose with the increase of its tax and shall
enforce a punishment to those who will violate.

"The question should not be whether marijuana is good or bad, but rather, how can we control
it? What is the best strategy to save lives? Government regulation is important. The bill provides
an important mechanism of checks and balances of citizen accountability, explained Cocabo
 (2015).

The bill seeks to legalize and regulate the medical use of cannabis in compliance with
government policy to balance its national drug control program and the regulated use of
dangerous drugs for treatment and medication of patients with debilitating medical conditions,
said Geronimo (2014).

I. Conclusion