Cannabis Oil: The New Miracle Drug?

        When I was in community college, I took a research design sociology class. The professor put the class into groups and we were assigned a research question to answer. The question my group had was, "should marijuana be legalized on a federal level?" Our group found evidence that marijuana has many long term negative effects including "distorted perception, decreased attention span and hallucinations" in some individuals. The chemical in marijuana responsible for this "high" is called THC. My group and I found more evidence that marijuana has harmful effects for some individuals. We interviewed multiple people and found that the subjects who smoked marijuana daily, as opposed to occasionally, reported failing multiple classes and unable to keep their jobs. 
         Colorado and Washington recently became the first states in the nation to legalize marijuana. Consequently, both states have reported millions of dollars in additional revenue from the marijuana industry. 
         Many Americans have decided to leave their home states and relocate to Colorado or Washington because of easier access to marijuana. The Wilson family of Scotch Plains, New Jersey is an example of this phenomenon. They moved to Denver, Colorado in February 2014 because their three year old daughter Vivian has Dravet syndrome. Dravet syndrome is a form of severe epilepsy and can be fatal. The Wilson's left New Jersey because of road blocks in the medical marijuana program and resistance from politicians, including Governor Chris Christie. They did not want to rely on change in the government because it could take years, which is time Vivian does not have. Brian Wilson, Vivian's father, heard about other success stories with cannabis oil in children with epilepsy and decided he needed to see if cannabis oil worked for Vivian. He reports that Vivian has improved significantly, but is remaining cautiously optimistic. The cannabis oil the Mr. Wilson makes himself is low in THC, but high in CBD, which is the "good"chemical that reduces the seizures. The Wilson's would like to return to New Jersey because they miss their family and friends, but say there needs to be changes in the law and hope Governor Christie can push legislation through to make it happen. 
         I have done a lot of research on the consequences of marijuana use and although I feel it is harmful, I believe that marijuana will be legalized on a federal level in my lifetime. Also, I am starting to wonder if marijuana has benefits for a percentage of the population, as demonstrated in the Wilson case. It would be interesting and beneficial for tests to be done at a credible hospital or university to see results in children with debilitating illnesses. I will be looking for updates on the Wilson case and others across the country. 

Children and Illegal Immigration

      I remember understanding the phrase "illegal immigration" when I was sophomore in high school. My history teacher had our class discuss main policy points of the upcoming 2008 presidential election. The topics our class debated were illegal immigration, abortion, and gay marriage. While my classmates were split fairly evenly on abortion and gay marriage, everyone seemed to agree with allowing illegal immigration. I remember feeling uncomfortable because I disagreed with the idea of people coming illegally into the United States and expecting the same rights as citizens. 
     A problem that has been in the news recently is unaccompanied children illegally crossing the U.S. border and not having legal representation when they are brought to court. A group called Kids In Need of Defense, also known as KIND, is attempting to pair the children with pro bono attorneys who can help in immigration court. The group is striving to gain support from the Obama administration, but so far has been shut down by the House of Representatives. In my opinion, the group attempts to gain sympathy by telling the public that innocent children are being deported back to their respective home countries. My suspicions prove correct because in the last paragraph of the article Wendy Young, president of KIND, states, " 'I wish people would take a deep breath and remember these are children' ". Young fails to realize that the children she is trying to help are still illegal immigrants. I find it heart breaking that these children have traveled great distances, only to be detained at the border. Nonetheless, it is important to remember that what these children are doing is illegal. 
      I disagree with giving illegal immigrants, including children, rights and citizenship. When the DREAM Act in California was signed into law in 2011, I was furious with the government because I have many friends and family members struggling to pay for college. They are all U.S. citizens and yet are all in debt because of the loans they have taken out. Meanwhile, the DREAM Act allows students who are illegal immigrants to "apply for and receive state financial aid at California public and private colleges and private scholarships administered by California public colleges". The fact that an illegal immigrant can receive financial aid instead of a U.S. citizen truly confuses me.
     Conversely,I completely support legal immigration. My great-grandmother and her family immigrated from Yugoslavia, now the country of Croatia, in the early 1900's. My great-great-grandfather had already been living in the United States, legally, for thirteen years before his family was able to join him. During that time, he worked to save money for the proper paperwork and travel expenses for his wife and five children. The entire family became fluent in English and took pride in being Americans. In addition, many of my friends immigrated to the United States with their families after years of saving and preparation. They were also able to become U.S. citizens after living in the States for many years and taking the citizenship test. 
      I am against illegal immigration because it devalues my own family history. My ancestors struggled for many years to legally come to this country and for others to receive similar benefits just because they happen to be illegal is a metaphorical slap to the face. 

Subsidies Expected to Continue

     I found an article from The Wall Street Journal titled "Appeals Court to Revisit Ruling Limiting Health Law Subsidies" from September 4, 2014. 
     This article discusses insurance subsidies in the Affordable Health Care Act. A federal appeals court recently ruled that it will "rehear a case challenging insurance subsidies in the federal health law after making   "an earlier ruling that invalidated the subsidies in many states." 
     The court overruled their former decision that abolished the IRS regulation which explains subsidies are available on both state and federal levels. 
      Millions of Americans receive subsidies through the federal government and the Affordable Health Care Act would allow this to continue on a federal level. The court is expected to begin new arguments on December 17th.
      This issue is important because it will likely cause conflict amongst Republicans, many of whom want the Affordable Health Care Act to be repealed. However, this ruling is considered a "win" for the Obama administration. Also,the American public should be following this debate closely because they could qualify for subsidies. 

Medicare Costs to Lower

       I found an article from The New York Times titled, “Medicare: Not Such A Budget-Buster Anymore”,from August 27, 2014.

       The continuation of Medicare has been a debated topic for quite some time because of the believed astronomical expense.

       This article reveals startling new evidence that the current Medicare budget for 2019 is $95 billion, less than was projected in 2010. This means that although the deficit for the United States is high, it is not viewed to rise quite as high as previously thought.

The Congressional Budget Office (C.B.O.) is the organization responsible for estimating the cost of Medicare in the future. It is important to keep in mind that the numbers are estimates, and other factors that affect reductions should be taken into consideration. The Affordable Health Care Act and members of the health care industry, including doctors and their patients, have helped make remarkable strides in reducing costs.

While it is encouraging that the changes being made are making an impact to the deficit, it is not known if Medicare costs will rise or fall when the economy strengthens.
       I plan on becoming a speech-language pathologist and I hope to work in a hospital with elderly patients so Medicare costs are of great interest to me. In the future, I may not be able to help many patients with Medicare because I would not be compensated financially. I would be forced to accept more patients that pay privately, in order to make a living.