Medical marijuana users get OK from Ontario government to vaporize anywhere

Medical marijuana users in Ontario are now legally able to use vaporizers just about anywhere in the province.

Employers, restaurant owners can still ban users from smoking on the premises

The Canadian Press Posted: Nov 25, 2015 5:39 PM EST | Last Updated: November 26, 2015

A new law means medical marijuana users in Ontario can vaporize in restaurants, at work or on playgrounds. (Getty Images)

Latest

Ontario reconsidering move to allow medical marijuana users to use vaporizers, smoke anywhere

Medical marijuana users in Ontario are now legally ableto use vaporizers just about anywhere in the province.

The Liberal government quietly exempted them this week from a lawthat bans the use of e-cigarettes anywhere regular cigarettes areprohibited. It means medical marijuana users can vaporize inrestaurants, at work or on playgrounds.

Associate Health Minister Dipika Damerla said under the exemptionfor medical marijuana users, employers or restaurant owners couldstill ban them from smoking on the premises.

"If it's bothering somebody, find another place to go andsmoke," she said Wednesday.

"Somebody who really needs it for medical reasons may need to beable to smoke it or vape it. On the other hand, we are verysensitive to people around them. It really is about balancing thoserights."

The exemption is about letting people who are very sick or in alot of pain to take their prescribed medication when they need to,Damerla said.

Jonathan Zaid, the founder of Canadians for Fair Access toMedical Marijuana, said the new regulations don't change much sincemedical marijuana users could already smoke "pretty much" anywherebefore the e-cigarette law was passed in May.

New regulations "nothing new"

"Public places like parks or sidewalks are for sure allowed nowin the regulations," he said. "So it doesn't really mean anything new because it has alwaysbeen allowed. There haven't been regulations pertaining tovaporizers in the past, but what it does mean is the provincialgovernment is taking a step forward and actually recognizing medical marijuana as a legitimate medicine."

But Zaid highly doubts the change in regulations will meanmedical marijuana users flooding playgrounds and restaurants tovaporize.

"There's one thing to have a right and there's another thing toabuse it," said Zaid, who uses medical marijuana to treat chronicheadaches.

"Everyone that I know, including myself, who uses medicalcannabis is discreet about it. They just want to use it as theirmedicine to feel better, to live a better quality of life and theydon't want to be harassed about it, so that also means they're nottypically likely to do it in a very public space."

Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown said he didn't wantto "make a lot of political hay" over the exemption, but he urgedthe Liberal government to make sure the new provincial rules are inline with what municipalities have established.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath didn't sound especially shocked by theexemption either.

When asked what she would do if someone was smoking marijuana

next to her at a restaurant, she laughed and said, "I'll probably

eat more."

CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News

Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|

Medical marijuana users get OK from Ontario government to vaporize anywhere

Employers, restaurant owners can still ban users from smoking on the premises

Latest

New regulations "nothing new"

Related Stories