Medical Marijuana, on the Taxpayers' Dime

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Published on
January 12, 2011

Here's what we're checking out today:

Medical Marijuana: Headline of the month award (Awesome? Cheesy? Both? You decide) goes to this Miami Herald story by Fred Tasker: South Florida man smokes marijuana at taxpayers' expense.

Cancer Costs: Because of the nation's fast-growing elderly population, the cost of treating cancer in the United States will rise 27 percent to at least $158 billion by 2020, Julie Steenhuysen reports for Reuters.

Health Reform: Will the Tucson shooting soften the previously vitriolic debate on health reform repeal? Um, maybe a little, Politico's Jennifer Haberkorn and Carrie Budoff Brown report.

Medicaid: Wisconsin's state medical society is arguing that the state should ration care for Medicaid patients rather than cut back on doctors' already-low Medicaid payments, Ken Terry reports for BNET. Is something similar happening in your state?

Environmental Health: New York Times blogger John Collins Rudolf outlines the tensions between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and community health advocates as the EPA devotes more money to studying the impact of pollution, stress and poverty on health.