Cannabis Saves Lives .org

Patient Advocacy Network offers workshops and activities that teach medical cannabis patients how to protect their legal rights, effectively engage the democratic process, and be powerful self-advocates.  Our advocacy programs help address a broad range of social issues that patients face.

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Compliance:

Patient Advocacy Network has provided workshops, trainings and operational procedures for cannabis business operators and employees since before the AG Guidelines.  PAN can help your business develop a smooth and efficient Compliance Program.  Please contact us for details.

 

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Workshops and Trainings

Patient Advocacy Network offers several workshops that provide patients with the tools to be effective grassroots political activists, advocates for patient's rights and powerful self-advocates.

 

Our trainings help patients better understand the process of engaging legislative bodies. We provide patients and caregivers with strategies for making better medical cannabis policies and addressing other social issues.

 

PAN has conducted hundreds of workshops to teach patients on how to handle police encounters and prepare for court. While we hope that the darkest days of federal DEA raids are over, we still hear from patients about protecting their gardens and getting pulled over on the road.  Our Law Enforcement Encounter Preparedness Training is still available for cannabis businesses.

 

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Our workshops cover the following topics and can be tailored for your group.  Please contact us to set up training.

  

How To Track Legislation & Take Action On Pending Bills

 

Preparing & Executing Effective Public Presentations To Governing Bodies & Officials

 

The Rules Of Good Writing & Where To Publish It

 

Organizing A Group For City Hall, State House, And Congressional Visits

  

Planning Effective Rallies And Other Public Events, Street Theater, Messaging And Managing The Media

 

How To Be Your Own Media

 

Security Culture And Protecting A Patient Garden, Or Protecting A Cannabis Business

 

Start And Manage Your Own Political Or Advocacy Organization

 

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS - How To Handle A Law Enforcement Encounter As A Medical Cannabis Patient, Prepare A Legal Strategy If Arrested

 

 

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Court Advocacy & Legal Education

 

Have you ever been pulled over?  Had to speak with police?  Everyone should know his or her fundamental legal rights during a law enforcement encounter.  Even if we may currently be out of the dark with hostile DEA smash and grab raids, we will all have to deal with our local police at some point and knowing your constitutional rights as well as law enforcement strategy is the difference between a night in jail and possible conviction or going home with no charges.

 

Patient Advocacy Network offers resources to patients that need to prepare a legal strategy or may have been criminally charged.  We teach patients about what to expect in navigating the court process, offer legal referrals, how to develop and manage a legal defense, organizing court support and legal defense fund raising.

 

Patient Advocacy Network helps patients prepare in advance for the possibility of a police encounter, being arrested, charged and going to court. Tens of thousands of patients and hundreds of patient groups have attended our raid preparedness and law enforcement encounter trainings.

 

 

 

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Legislative Education & Advocacy

 

Our Patient Advocates regularly work with elected officials and their staff members to keep them informed on matters and issues that are adversely affecting medical cannabis patients and offer solutions.

 

PAN teaches patients how to monitor medical cannabis discussions within legislative bodies and prepare effective statements, written and verbal. We teach patients how to develop political relationships on the local level and become a reputable resource on medical cannabis issues.

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Prisoner Outreach Workshop

 

P.O.W. is one of PAN’s oldest programs.  We are delighted than many medical cannabis prisoners of the Drug War are released and few are being convicted but law enforcement will still make an example of someone, like what became known as the 'Kettle Falls Five' in Washington State.

 

Search news for:

Four Medical Marijuana Patients In Eastern Washington Are Headed To Prison

 

PAN encourages you to lift the spirits of a Prisoner of the Drug War by sending a card or letter.  PAN maintains a list of Political Prisoners of Compassion and Conscience. These prisoners are serving federal prison sentences for their outspoken and visible involvement with providing or cultivating cannabis for compassionate purposes.

 

Many of these prisoners serve their time in prisons far from their homes and families and therefore rarely get visitors.  Mail call is an extremely important time of day.

 

Please write today!

 

Make sure you include the prisoner ID# on the envelope or post card and include a return address.

 

Here are a number of useful articles online about letter writing etiquette when writing to someone in prison.  You are strongly advised to read some of these articles before you write and send your letter.

 

PAN updates a list of prisoners on our blog Cannabis Patient Voice from time to time. Please sign up for email updates to get up to date information on the P.O.W. and our other projects.

 

 

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Information, Referrals & Watchdog Services

 

PAN keeps watch of local, state, and federal actions that may affect patients’ access to medical cannabis, and keeps our members informed of important developments.  

 

We provide a wide range of referrals to help patients with legal, social, and medical issues.

 

Our major concern with all the changes in the laws and the addition of adult recreational use, is that the importance of medical cannabis is being diminished, the cost and taxes on medical are going up and Compassionate Care is almost non-existent.

 

California is the birthplace of the medical cannabis movement and the Compassionate Use Act. PAN is doing everything we can to preserve authentic medical cannabis laws and preserve Compassionate Care.