Dr. Wendy Zadeh Resigns From Medical Advisory Board, Calls Out Iowa House And Accuses The Process Of Being Miscommunicated | Des Moines Register Reports

From the Des Moines Register:

Klein said during his remarks on the chamber floor: “This is a result of working with members of the board that we put together.” He added: “When we look at this bill and what we’re doing, this is a great example of why we put a board of medical professionals in place to begin with. Because we are, for the most part, not doctors in this room.“

Both Klein and Breckenridge said in interviews Friday that they met face-to-face with several members of the advisory board earlier this year. House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, also attended the meeting, which was held in her office.

A spokesman for Upmeyer directed questions Friday to Klein, who said he doesn’t believe he misled the public on the chamber floor about the board’s actions. “I was never intending to misrepresent,” Klein said.

Klein also defended the bill, which he believes addresses a longstanding issue about how much THC is supposed to be available to a patient at any point. He also disputed Zadeh’s warning that the new THC amount under the bill “would be 10 times as much” as the former percentage cap.

The advisory board’s chairman, Mike McKelvey, said Friday that he and Zadeh were among four board members who met with legislators.

McKelvey, a Mason City police captain, is the only non-physician on the board. He said, like Zadeh, he was surprised to hear legislators claim board members supported the level of THC this week’s bill would allow in medical marijuana products. That was not his recollection of what was said at the meeting with legislators.

McKelvey said he and other board members told legislators they were open to the idea of shifting the THC cap from a percentage basis to a weight basis. Doing so could make it easier to measure compliance with the cap, he said. But he said the board has not changed its mind on the basic point of the cap, which is to minimize the THC content of products sold under the state’s new medical-marijuana program. The board’s consensus on that question, he said, remains, “slow and steady as she goes.”

A recent Iowa Poll published in the Des Moines Register showed 78 of Iowans want the state to expand its medical marijuana program.

Breckenridge, the Democratic legislator, said a specific gram amount was not discussed in the meeting. He said subsequent communication with Klein led to a 20-gram limit included in one version of the bill. That amount later increased to 25 grams during negotiations. Breckenridge said he was under the impression that members of the advisory board were aware of the gram amount.

“We’re not trying to circumvent the board or do anything like that,” he said. “I wish if there were issues that the board would have reached out to us. … I’m open and would love to sit down and visit as this bill proceeds forward to make sure we have a safe piece of legislation.”

A spokesman for Reynolds declined to comment Friday.

The bill now heads to the Senate.

More on this development later.