ARIZONA MEDICAL MARIJUANA FACTS 2011

•  As of October 2011, a total of 14852 marijuana patients have received their Arizona medical marijuana card from the Arizona Department of Health.
• To date, statistics show that only 7 people have been denied after applying for an Arizona marijuana card.
• 745 applications to be caregivers have been approved.
• 12,367 people, or 83% of total applicants, have also requested a permit to grow their own medical marijuana.
• 3 out of every 4 Arizona medical marijuana patients are male (74.50%)
• Only 12 Arizona patients are minors under the age of 18.
• There are however 38 patients over the age of 81.
• The vast majority of marijuana patients in Arizona (more than 75%) are over the age of 30, in fact medical marijuana is most present in the 51-60 age group, or about 24% of the total.
• 86% of Arizona patients report chronic pain as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana. Muscle spasms come in second with 15% and nausea is third with almost 13%.
• The least common qualifying condition is sclerosis, with only 15 patients reporting it.

MARIJUANA STATISTICS AND FACTS: AGES OF MARIJUANA PATIENTS

Age	Number of Patients	Percentage
<18	12	0.08%
18-30	3458	23.1%
31-40	3096	20.7%
41-50	2875	19.3%
51-60	3554	23.8%
61-70	1690	11.3%
71-80	207	1.4%
81+	38	0.3%

MARIJUANA STATISTICS AND FACTS: GENDER OF MARIJUANA PATIENTS

Gender	Number of Patients	Percentage
Male	11115	74.5
Female	3810	25.5

MARIJUANA STATISTICS AND FACTS: REPORTED CONDITIONS

Condition	Amount Reported	Percentage
Cancer	696	4.7%
Hepatitis C	842	5.6%
Cachexia	265	1.8%
Seizures	256	2.4%
Glaucoma	294	1.2%
Sclerosis	15	0.1%
Chronic Pain	12901	86.4%
Muscle Spasms	2226	14.9%
HIV/AIDS	245	1.6%
Crohn’s Disease	215	1.4%
Nausea	1909	12.8%

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Arizona Medical Marijuana Card

Arizona Medical Marijuana Card Program

In order to receive full legal protections of Arizona medical marijuana laws, patients must apply for and obtain a registry identification card from the state’s mandatory medical marijuana program, which is administered by the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS).

HOW TO OBTAIN A MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARD IN ARIZONA

To legally qualify for medical marijuana in Arizona, you must complete the entire ADHS application form for the state’s medical marijuana program, which is only available online at http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana. Here are directions from the ADHS on to apply for your AZ medical marijuana card:

• download Adobe Reader. Without it, you will not be able to print your application receipt.
• collect all documentation required during the application process and follow all application instructions for Adult Patients, Patients Under 18, or Caregivers.
  Before beginning the application process, be sure you have the following items in digital format ready for upload:
  - electronic copy of photo id; and
  - current digital photograph; and
  - electronic copy of physician's certification form; and
  - electronic copy of your attestation; and
  - Visa or Mastercard for payment; and
  - if applicable, SNAP documentation.
• verify all data is correct before saving each page of the application.
• complete and submit the entire application at http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana without closing the browser. [PLEASE NOTE: You will not be able to save and resume your application later.]

OTHER RELATED ARIZONA MEDICAL MARIJUANA PROGRAM FORMS AND INFO:

• Adult Patient Application Checklist
• Patient Under 18 Application Checklist
• Adult Patient Application Instructions
• Patient Under 18 Application Instructions
• Adult Patient Online Application
• Patient Under 18 Online Application
• Patient Attestation Form
• Patient Under 18 Attestation Form
• Physician Certification Form
• Reviewing Physician Form for Patients Under 18
• Designated Caregiver Application Checklist
• Designated Caregiver Application Instructions
• Designated Caregiver Online Application
• Caregiver Attestation Form
• Add/Replace Caregiver Form (for Qualified Patients only)
• Applicant Fingerprinting Instructions

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• General FAQs
• Cultivation FAQs
• Cities and Towns FAQs
• Dispensaries FAQs
• Physicians FAQs
• Qualifying Patients FAQs
• Designated Caregivers FAQs
• Online Applications FAQs
• Renewal Fact Sheet and FAQs

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Arizona Medical Marijuana Laws

Arizona Proposition 203

AN INITIATIVE MEASURE AMENDING TITLE 36, ARIZONA REVISED STATUTES, BY ADDING CHAPTER 28.1; AMENDING SECTION 43-1201, ARIZONA REVISED STATUTES; RELATING TO THE MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA; PROVIDING FOR CONDITIONAL REPEAL. TEXT OF PROPOSED AMENDMENT
Be it enacted by the people of the state of Arizona:
Section 1. Title.
This act may be cited as the “Arizona Medical Marijuana Act.”
Sec. 2. Findings.?The People of the State of Arizona find and declare the following:

A. Marijuana’s recorded use as a medicine goes back nearly 5,000 years, and modern medical research has confirmed beneficial uses for marijuana in treating or alleviating the pain, nausea and other symptoms associated with a variety of debilitating medical conditions, including cancer, multiple sclerosis and HIV/AIDS, as found by the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine in March 1999.

B. Studies published since the 1999 Institute of Medicine report have continued to show the therapeutic value of marijuana in treating a wide array of debilitating medical conditions. These include relief of neuropathic pain caused by multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS and other illnesses that often fail to respond to conventional treatments and relief of nausea, vomiting and other side effects of drugs used to treat HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C, increasing the chances of patients continuing on life-saving treatment regimens.

C. Marijuana has many currently accepted medical uses in the United States, having been recommended by thousands of licensed physicians to at least 260,000 patients in the states with medical marijuana laws. Marijuana’s medical utility has been recognized by a wide range of medical and public health organizations, including the American Academy of HIV Medicine, American College of Physicians, American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and many others.

D. Data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reports and the Compendium of Federal Justice Statistics show that approximately 99 out of every 100 marijuana arrests in the U.S. are made under state law, rather than under federal law. Consequently, changing state law will have the practical effect of protecting from arrest the vast majority of seriously ill patients who have a medical need to use marijuana.

E. Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Rhode Island and Washington have removed state-level criminal penalties for the medical use and cultivation of marijuana. Arizona joins in this effort for the health and welfare of its citizens.

F. States are not required to enforce federal law or prosecute people for engaging in activities prohibited by federal law. Therefore, compliance with this act does not put the state of Arizona in violation of federal law.

G. State law should make a distinction between the medical and nonmedical uses of marijuana. Hence, the purpose of this act is to protect patients with debilitating medical conditions, as well as their physicians and providers, from arrest and prosecution, criminal and other penalties and property forfeiture if such patients engage in the medical use of marijuana.

Sec. 3. Title 36, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding Chapter 28.1 to read:
CHAPTER 28.1 ARIZONA MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACT
36-2801. Definitions
IN THIS CHAPTER, UNLESS THE CONTEXT OTHERWISE REQUIRES:
1. "ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA"
(a) WITH RESPECT TO A QUALIFYING PATIENT, THE "ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA" MEANS:
(i) TWO-AND-ONE-HALF OUNCES OF USABLE MARIJUANA; AND
(ii) IF THE QUALIFYING PATIENT’S REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARD STATES THAT THE QUALIFYING PATIENT IS AUTHORIZED TO CULTIVATE MARIJUANA, TWELVE MARIJUANA PLANTS CONTAINED IN AN ENCLOSED, LOCKED FACILITY EXCEPT THAT THE PLANTS ARE NOT REQUIRED TO BE IN AN ENCLOSED, LOCKED FACILITY IF THE PLANTS ARE BEING TRANSPORTED BECAUSE THE QUALIFYING PATIENT IS MOVING.
(b) WITH RESPECT TO A DESIGNATED CAREGIVER, THE "ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA" FOR EACH PATIENT ASSISTED BY THE?DESIGNATED CAREGIVER UNDER THIS CHAPTER MEANS:
(i) TWO-AND-ONE-HALF OUNCES OF USABLE MARIJUANA; AND
(ii) IF THE DESIGNATED CAREGIVER’S REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARD PROVIDES THAT THE DESIGNATED CAREGIVER IS AUTHORIZED?TO CULTIVATE MARIJUANA, TWELVE MARIJUANA PLANTS CONTAINED IN AN ENCLOSED, LOCKED FACILITY EXCEPT THAT THE PLANTS ARE NOT REQUIRED TO BE IN AN ENCLOSED, LOCKED FACILITY IF THE PLANTS ARE BEING TRANSPORTED BECAUSE THE DESIGNATED CAREGIVER IS MOVING.
(c) MARIJUANA THAT IS INCIDENTAL TO MEDICAL USE, BUT IS NOT USABLE MARIJUANA AS DEFINED IN THIS CHAPTER, SHALL NOT BE COUNTED TOWARD A QUALIFYING PATIENT’S OR DESIGNATED CAREGIVER’S ALLOWABLE AMOUNT OF MARIJUANA.
2. "CARDHOLDER" MEANS A QUALIFYING PATIENT, A DESIGNATED CAREGIVER OR A NONPROFIT MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARY AGENT WHO HAS BEEN ISSUED AND POSSESSES A VALID REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARD.
3. "DEBILITATING MEDICAL CONDITION" MEANS ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING:
(a) CANCER, GLAUCOMA, POSITIVE STATUS FOR HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS, ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY SYNDROME, HEPATITIS C, AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS, CROHN'S DISEASE, AGITATION OF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE OR THE TREATMENT OF THESE CONDITIONS.
(b) A CHRONIC OR DEBILITATING DISEASE OR MEDICAL CONDITION OR ITS TREATMENT THAT PRODUCES ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING: CACHEXIA OR WASTING SYNDROME; SEVERE AND CHRONIC PAIN; SEVERE NAUSEA; SEIZURES, INCLUDING THOSE CHARACTERISTIC OF EPILEPSY; OR SEVERE AND PERSISTENT MUSCLE SPASMS, INCLUDING THOSE CHARACTERISTIC OF MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS. More >> (PDF)

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Arizona Medical Marijuana Qualification

Who Qualifies for Medicinal Marijuana in Arizona

Arizona Medical Marijuana Qualifications On November 2, 2010, Arizona Proposition 203 (AKA the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act) was approved by 50.13% of voters. Proposition 203 removes state-level criminal penalties on the use and possession of medical marijuana (also referred to as medical weed, medical pot or medical cannabis) by qualifying patients who obtain a recommendation from an Arizona licensed physician and register with the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS). The law requires the ADHS to establish a registration and renewal application system for patients and nonprofit dispensaries, as well as a web-based verification system for law enforcement and dispensaries to verify registry identification cards. As the law is in its infancy, this system is still in the process of being established.
Read the full text of the Arizona Proposition 203 here.

HOW TO QUALIFY FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA IN ARIZONA

1. Must be a resident of Arizona.
2. Obtain an authenticated, written certification from a doctor of medicine, doctor of osteopathic medicine, naturopathic physician or homeopathic physician licensed in the state of Arizona that states that you have been diagnosed with a debilitating condition and that you would likely receive benefit from marijuana Patients can find a medical marijuana doctor in Arizona here.
3. Note: You may be required to bring a copy of your medical records to your marijuana evaluation appointment, indicating diagnosis of a qualifying condition as listed below. Learn how to request your medical records.
4. Once you have received your marijuana recommendation, you must register with the Arizona Department of Health Services to obtain a Medical Marijuana card.

WHAT AILMENTS CAN BE TREATED WITH MEDICAL CANNABIS IN ARIZONA?

Patients in Arizona diagnosed with the following illnesses are afforded legal protection under Proposition 203:

• Cancer, glaucoma or positive status for the human immunodeficiency virus, Hepatitis C, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease), Crohn's disease, agitation of Alzheimer’s disease or the treatment of these conditions, OR
• A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following: cachexia or wasting syndrome; severe and chronic pain; severe nausea; seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy; or severe and persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACCESS IN ARIZONA

Some medical marijuana patients will claim they have a doctor's prescription for medical marijuana, but marijuana prescriptions are in fact illegal. The federal government classifies marijuana as a schedule I drug. Therefore doctors are unable to prescribe marijuana to their patients, and medical marijuana patients cannot go to a pharmacy to fill a prescription for medical marijuana. Instead, medical marijuana physicians will supply patients with a medical marijuana recommendation in compliance with state law.

Cultivation and possession limits: Qualified patients or their caregivers may obtain up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana in a 14-day period from a registered nonprofit medical marijuana dispensary. The law allows the certification of a number of non-profit dispensaries not to exceed 10% of the number of pharmacies in the state (which would be about 124). If the patient lives more than 25 miles from the nearest dispensary, the patient or caregiver may cultivate up to 12 marijuana plants in an enclosed, locked facility.

Notice: ADHS suspended the dispensary portion of the Medical Marijuana Act until the end of a lawsuit. Before filling out your application, you may want to consider whether or not you will need a caregiver and you may want to request to cultivate or designate a caregiver during the application process. Please note that if you choose to designate a caregiver for this purpose, you as a patient cannot also cultivate. Once you have designated a caregiver, the caregiver application process must also be completed. The designated caregiver application can be completed at: http://www.azdhs.gov/medicalmarijuana/caregivers/index.htm. Please take special note of caregiver-specific application instructions.

HOW TO CONTACT THE ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES

Arizona Department of Health Services
150 N. 18th Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85007
(602) 542-1025
(602) 542-0883 Fax

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Arizona Medical Marijuana

Arizona Medical Marijuana Laws, Arizona Medical Marijuana Qualifications and General Arizona Marijuana Information The State of Arizona has a legalized medical marijuana program, which allows legal medical marijuana patients to receive a marijuana recommendation from a certified physician, apply for a State-issued Arizona Medical Marijuana ID Card, and grow and/or purchase marijuana for medicinal use per state guidelines. We have compiled the following index of medical marijuana information in Arizona to serve as a legal library to our users for legal reference of Arizona's laws and guidelines regarding Medical Cannabis.

Please note that in order to become a legal medical marijuana patient you must first have a qualifying condition as outlined by the department of health services and/or department of justice. For a comprehensive list of Arizona's medical marijuana qualifying conditions you can visit our qualifying conditions section located on the top of our menu under "legal states".

Since the Arizona medical marijuana program is still changing their laws and new Arizona medical marijuana laws are being enacted on a monthly basis, please be sure to visit our site frequently to get the most updated laws as it pertains to the Arizona medical marijuana program. Please click a corresponding link to find out more about your Arizona's Medical Marijuana Program.

ARIZONA QUALIFICATION

Find out Who Qualifies for Marijuana in Arizona in our definitive guide of Arizona's qualification guidelines. Read up on medical conditions that are covered under Arizona's medical marijuana program, age restrictions, criminal conviction restrictions, and more.

ARIZONA MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAWS

Read Arizona's Full Medical Marijuana Laws to gain full specific knowledge of Arizona's exact legal guidelines without interpretation. We suggest that you print Arizona's Full Medicinal Marijuana Laws for use with our MyDoc program in order to provide your physician full insight into Arizona's laws for his knowledge.

ARIZONA MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARD

Find out how to obtain a{n} Arizona Medical Marijuana Card with our guide to Arizona's state medicinal marijuana ID program. Some states require that you obtain your card prior to obtaining your medicine, so read here first to ensure that you know Arizona's requirements.