Special Report: Medical Marijuana In New Mexico

By Angela Kocherga / ABC-7

While the drug war rages in Mexico and federal law enforcement agents work to stop drug smugglers, patients in New Mexico are able to gain access to medical marijuana.

Many are quietly seeking relief for a variety of medical conditions.

?I?m just at my wits end. I don?t know what to do,? said Vickie Vaughn in a small office in Las Cruces.

She drove more than 100 miles one way from Silver City to see Hilda Chavez, a naturopath with more than 30 years experience. Chavez is a specialist on natural medicine and in New Mexico that includes marijuana.

?I just feel like I?m a troubleshooter. I help people figure it out,? said Chavez. She also helps patients who have questions about applying for the New Mexico Department of Health?s Medical Cannabis program.

Vaughn wants to use marijuana to cope with fibromyalgia, a medical condition that causes debilitating pain in joints and muscles.

?I?m 60 years old and I just can?t stand it anymore, ?she said tearfully. ?I cry all the time because I?m in so much pain.?

Chavez gave her information about the requirements and helped Vaughn set up a doctor?s appointment.

?If you qualify, which I think you do, we will get you certified so you can participate in this program totally legally and have peace of mind and access to medicinal-quality marijuana,? Chavez explained to her.

Patients need a doctor to certify they suffer from one of 16 approved medical conditions, and could benefit from marijuana.

In New Mexico patients are allowed to buy marijuana from non-profit licensed producers or to grow a limited number of plants themselves?legally.

It?s a stark contrast to the scenario just across the border in Mexico where rival drug cartels are locked in a bloody fight for smuggling routes to the U.S.

In nearby Ciudad Juarez the violence has claimed an estimated 10,000 lives since 2006.

On the U.S. side of the border the federal government has mounted a massive effort to stop cartels from smuggling drugs into the country. Ironically, a few former federal law enforcement officers who took part in the war on drugs are now patients who use medical marijuana.

Most seek treatment secretly.

One patient, who does not want his name used, worked for a U.S. federal law enforcement agency on the border for decades. Now retired, he uses medical marijuana for chronic pain caused by an old gunshot wound he suffered years ago during a drug bust.

Debilitating pain also spurred cancer patient Susan Terrazas to seek relief with medical marijuana.

?It?s the pain and the suffering that you go through every day,? she said.

She?s in chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. She wanted an alternative to heavy duty prescription pain killers.

?First, I was taking some Vicodin, then oxycodone, and then I got on OxyContin. But I didn?t like the OxyContin because it was so strong. And I prefer taking something more herbal,? she said.

New Mexico created a medical marijuana program in 2007 under the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act named for two cancer patients.

Sixteen states and Washington D.C. allow medical marijuana use. Seventeen states have pending legislation to permit legal use for medical purposes.

This week, the organization Americans for Safe Access on its website urged people to join in celebrating ?Medical Marijuana Week by standing up for our right to safe access.?

The organization has an action plan that includes rallies in several cities on Thursday.

In New Mexico there are now more than 5,000 certified patients, and some are former Texans who moved across the state line to meet a residency requirement.

?Yeah there are patients from Texas who have moved here or already have residences here who qualify,? said Chavez.

She helps educate patients about the different marijuana treatments – edible food items made with ?cannibutter? to topical creams.

?Apply it to the muscles and to the joints for inflammation. Cannabis is a very good anti-inflammatory,? explained Chavez. ?The patients don?t know they have options. They think they have to smoke it.”

As she talked to patient Vickie Vaughn about the variety of formulas, the grandmother said, ?I?m a very law-abiding citizen, and I was even hesitant to come here since I knew it was against federal law.?

Chavez reassured her that medical marijuana is legally available for qualified patients in New Mexico.

?These patients are not criminals. These patients are legitimately in pain,? she said.