Last Updated 6/18/2004

Medical Marijuana: Arizona law, as of December, 1996, allows physicians to prescribe any Schedule I drug (including marijuana). The patient must be seriously ill and have a recommendation for that drug from a second physician on file. Because the Food and Drug Administration regulates prescriptions, doctors cannot prescribe Schedule I drugs unless allowed to do so by the federal government.

Other Recent Drug Reforms: In 1996, Arizona became the first state to implement sweeping drug policy reform when its voters approved Proposition 200. That initiative, also known as the Drug Medicalization, Prevention and Control Act of 1996, mandates that non-violent drug offenders arrested for simple possession or use of an illegal drug must receive drug treatment instead of jail time for their first and second offenses. It also allows doctors to prescribe marijuana and other drugs (such as heroin and ecstasy) for medicinal use when it becomes legal to do so under federal law.

An analysis by the Arizona Supreme Court found that Proposition 200 diverted 2,600 non-violent offenders into drug treatment in its first year, saving Arizona taxpayers $2.56 million. Over three-fourths of the offenders tested drug-free after completing the program. A follow-up Supreme Court study in 2001 found that Proposition 200 saved taxpayers over $6 million in prisons costs in its second year. The Supreme Court concluded, “The Drug Medicalization, Prevention and Control Act of 1996 has allowed the judicial branch to build an effective probation model to treat and supervise substance abusing offenders. . . .  All of these factors are resulting in safer communities and more substance abusing probationers in recovery.”

Norman Helber, the chief of adult probation for Maricopa County (which accounts for over half of all drug arrests in Arizona) noted that treatment instead of incarceration “has been fantastic from the field perspective.” Arizona Appellate Court Judge Rudy Gerber reports, “[Proposition 200] is doing more to reduce drug use and crime than any other state program and saving taxpayer dollars at the same time.”

Despite the fact that two out of three Arizona voters voted for Proposition 200, the Arizona legislature passed legislation overturning most of the initiative. In 1998, voters supported referendums on the legislation such as Proposition 300 and 301 and defeated the changes. Voters also approved an initiative making it more difficult for legislators to tamper with voter-approved initiatives in the future.

In November of 2002 voters narrowly rejected a new drug policy reform bill, Proposition 203. This bill would have decriminalized small amounts of marijuana, repealed mandatory minimums, set up a medical marijuana program, and removed court control of non-violent drug offenders. The bill still won the support of 43 percent of voters, demonstrating that support for such bills continues despite resistance from federal officials. 

Organizations and Resources in Arizona:

• Arizona Prevention Resource Center