Doctor Group Lobbies for Tougher Western Australia
Marijuana Laws, Cites Mental Health Threat

The Australian Medical Association has called on
the state government of Western Australia to
introduce harsher marijuana laws. It warned of an
increased risk of schizophrenia among pot
smokers, citing a new review of international
research on the links between marijuana and
mental illness.
Western Australia has some of the most tolerant
pot laws in the country. While the possession,
use, or cultivation of any amount of marijuana
remains illegal, under the state's 2004 Cannabis
Control Act, adults possessing 30 grams or less
or two or less non-hydroponically-grown plants
can avoid a criminal conviction if they pay a
fine or attend drug classes.
The Western Australia government has promised to
toughen marijuana laws so that any adult who grew
marijuana or possessed more than 15 grams of it
would face criminal charges. But it has so far
failed to introduced the legislation.
On Saturday, AMA president Dr. Rosanna Capolingua
called on Western Australia Health Minister Jim
McGinty to get moving. "The soft marijuana laws
certainly do not help support the message that
marijuana is not a soft drug," Dr. Capolingua
told the newspaper The West. "Even though
punitive measures are not always smiled upon as
far as drug abuse goes, it really gets down to
when do we start protecting people from
substances such as marijuana and when do we need
laws to protect people?"
Capolingua's tough stance puts her and the AMA at
odds with its own official position on marijuana
adopted two years ago. In its Position Statement
-- Cannabis, 2006, the AMA had this to say about
criminal penalties for drug use:
"It is often cited that criminal penalties will
act as a deterrent to use. There is no evidence
to support this. In A Public Health Perspective
on Cannabis and Other Illegal Drugs, the Canadian
Medical Association highlights the profound
impact on health status associated with having a
criminal record. The presence of a criminal
record can severely limit employment prospects
leading to poor health."
"Evidence indicates that strict drug laws in
general encourage people to take more potent
drugs and to consume them in unsafe ways.
Prohibition also makes users less likely to seek
treatment when they get into difficulty.
'Prohibition is the cause of a significant
proportion of the health costs associated with
illicit drug use and it hinders the achievement
of the objective of harm minimization.' Research
indicates that the introduction of liberal drug
laws may result in a slight increase in temporary
drug use but that it is unlikely to increase, and
may even decrease, drug related health costs."