Dear Council Member Gary DeLong

I am writing to urge you to reject a ban on medical cannabis patients’ cooperatives and collectives in the city, and to work with stakeholders to find a regulatory solution that works for legal patients and the community at large.

Most of the legal medical cannabis patients in Long Beach rely on cooperatives and collectives for safe access to the doctor-recommended medicine they need to treat the symptoms of cancer, HIV/AIDS, Multiple Sclerosis, chronic pain and other serious conditions.

Closing these facilities would deny medicine to legitimate patients, and may place them at unnecessary risk in the unregulated illicit market for cannabis.

Research conducted by Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the nation’s leading medical cannabis advocacy organization, shows that sensible regulations reduce crime and complaints around medical cannabis cooperatives and collectives.

The City of Long Beach has already adopted an ordinance to facilitate safe access to medical cannabis. Some provisions of that ordinance may be overturned, if the California Supreme Court upholds the Appellate decision in Pack v. City of Long Beach.

However, this decision does not entirely bar the city for exercising appropriate oversight, not does it require the city to ban patients’ cooperatives and collectives outright.

The adverse decision in Pack v. City of Long Beach may provide an opportunity to revisit the city’s medical cannabis ordinance to find solutions that work for all of the stakeholders in the community – legal patients, neighbors, medical cannabis professional, law enforcement, and other.

Please reject calls for a ban on medical cannabis patients’ cooperatives and collectives and work with us to find a better solution.

Thank you,

[Your Name]
[Your Email]
[Your Address]