Berkeley Council Votes to Give Medical Marijuana to the Poor
The Berkeley City Council recently voted unanimously that local medical marijuana dispensaries donate an amount equal to 2 percent of their sales to low-income patients.
According to The Huffington Post, the law, which goes into effect next month, also states that the quality must be equal to that sold to regular patients.
Additionally, the council amended its current law to increase the number of dispensaries from three to four, with plans to increase the total number of dispensaries to six next year.
Council member Darryl Moore told Reuters, “It’s an equity issue. We want to ensure that those who are in need have access to the medication necessary to treat their condition.”
This open and welcoming attitude toward medical marijuana is quite the opposite from what’s been going on recently in San Jose, where the City Council recently approved strict regulations for medicinal marijuana.
The new rule in Berkeley defines low income as an individual who makes less than $32,000 or less than $64,000 for a family of four, half of the national median. The new will take take effect in August 2014.
