Time short for Schaumburg family’s quest to retain access to daughter’s medical marijuana

A Schaumburg family’s quest to change interstate commerce laws to retain access to their 19-year-old daughter’s medical marijuana patches is running out of time.

Maureen and Jim Surin said their supply of the patches that recently stopped being made in Illinois will be depleted in two weeks.

Though the patches needed by their daughter Ashley to prevent her epileptic seizures are available as close as Missouri, the Surins argue no one should have to break federal law by crossing state lines.

While individual states like Illinois and Missouri have made certain uses of marijuana legal, traveling across state lines with it technically remains illegal, legal experts say.

The Surins previously inspired Ashley’s Law in 2018 allowing children in Illinois to receive prescribed medical marijuana in school.

Diagnosed with leukemia at 2 years old, Ashley’s life was further complicated by epilepsy, autism and a concussion suffered during a fall from a seizure, even after she beat the cancer.

For the past eight years, her life has been transformed by her access to the patches licensed by Mary’s Medicinals of Colorado and manufactured locally by Green Thumb Industries of Chicago.

But that solution, which allowed Ashley to have a job and pursue a variety of interests, is in jeopardy since Mary’s Medicinals withdrew from the Illinois market.

But Maureen insists it’s the law and not Mary’s Medicinals’ business decision that’s the obstacle to be overcome. That’s also the opinion of her physician brother as well as a Chicago-based attorney, who’s one of the nation’s leading specialists in marijuana law.

“My brother said this is a huge health care crisis,” Maureen said. “Our health care system is failing us. It tells us, tough luck. Go figure it out for yourself. I think Congress is obliged to answer this crisis now. I believe there are hundreds of Ashleys out there. We’re fighting for a medicine that exists.”

The family is reluctant to experiment with anything similar because of how long it took to find the right product in the first place. Furthermore, challenges to Ashley’s communication skills make it hard for her to convey how anything different would make her feel.

A source of hope is the executive order President Donald Trump signed in December, paving the way for marijuana to be reclassified as a less dangerous drug.

“It is truly historic,” said Chicago attorney Eric Berlin, who leads the U.S. and global cannabis teams at the law firm Dentons and has specialized in that aspect of law for 17 years. “We had the FDA say it and now the president has acknowledged that cannabis has legitimate medical uses in the United States. That acknowledgment is critical.”

However, Berlin doesn’t believe any changes will happen in the next two weeks.

Anyone bringing a marijuana product across state lines risks imprisonment, though enforcement of such laws hasn’t been stringent, Berlin acknowledged.

But he notes the crackdown on undocumented immigration this year demonstrates how quickly things can change.

It’s the courage of people like the Surins who are most likely to make change happen, Berlin said. But there’s still plenty of opposition to loosening cannabis laws, which slows any potential changes, he added.

A Change.org campaign started by Maureen and aimed at changing interstate laws for medical marijuana in late December has already collected more than 1,250 signatures.

The White House is among the government agencies Maureen has reached out to independently, and she did receive a form letter back from Trump on Dec. 10.

“Please know your courage reflects the power of the human spirit, and your tenacity is an inspiration to so many,” the letter signed by Trump reads. “We hope you find comfort in the love of family and friends and that you will continue to be uplifted by the abiding strength and support of all of those around you.”

Maureen also contacted officials at the Illinois Department of Public Health and the office of U.S. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg. Representatives of those offices have not responded to the Daily Herald’s requests for comment.