Patients Deserve Access

Advocacy isn’t something I chose lightly, it chose me. As a lifelong New Jersey resident, a certified Cannabis Community Educator, Director of Operations at Elucidation Strategies, and most importantly a registered medical cannabis patient living with Multiple Sclerosis, I’ve learned that silence doesn’t serve patients. Speaking up does.

That’s why I recently submitted formal comments in strong support of Senate Bill S2564, legislation that would finally legalize limited personal cannabis cultivation in New Jersey up to six plants for adult-use consumers and up to ten plants for registered medical patients.

This wasn’t just a policy position. It was personal.

Cannabis as Medicine Is Not One-Size-Fits-All

For patients like me, cannabis isn’t about recreation or convenience it’s about function, dignity, and quality of life.

The reality of living with a neurological disease means managing a rotating set of symptoms: neuropathic pain, muscle spasticity, inflammation, sleep disruption, fatigue, and cognitive challenges. Relief doesn’t come from just “any” cannabis. It comes from specific strains, terpene profiles, and cultivation methods that work with my body not against it.

Unfortunately, New Jersey’s dispensary system does not consistently meet those needs.

Strains that help patients:

• Disappear for months at a time

• Are discontinued without notice

• Are cultivated for high THC rather than therapeutic balance

• Are priced out of reach for patients on disability or fixed incomes

Home cultivation changes that equation. It restores continuity of care, consistency, and patient autonomy, things that should never be optional in healthcare.

Why Medical Plant Limits Matter

One of the most important aspects of S2564 is its recognition that medical patients require different standards than recreational users.

A common misconception is that “one plant equals one supply.” Anyone with lived experience knows that’s simply not true. Plants fail. Yields vary. Potency fluctuates. And most patients rely on multiple strains to manage different symptoms daytime versus nighttime, pain versus spasticity, focus versus rest.

Allowing up to ten plants for medical use is not excessive. It’s practical. It allows for:

• Backup when plants fail

• Strain diversity for symptom-specific relief

• A sustainable supply without constant replanting

This isn’t about abundance. It’s about reliability.

Constructive, Responsible Home Grow Rules

In my comments, I didn’t just say “yes” to home grow I offered recommendations to ensure it’s done safely, responsibly, and with patients at the center.

Those recommendations include:

• Clear patient protections so medical growers operating within legal limits are not subject to criminal or civil penalties

• No mandatory home grow registries, which create privacy risks and discourage compliance

• Reasonable, non cost-prohibitive security standards focused on preventing diversion, not punishing patients

• Explicit permission for non-flower use, including oils, tinctures, edibles, and topicals for personal medical use

• No arbitrary canopy or height restrictions, relying instead on clear plant counts that reflect real world growing conditions

Good policy listens to lived experience. These recommendations come directly from it.

Why This Matters

Like many people, I spent my life believing that if I worked hard, followed the rules, and paid into the system, appropriate care would be there when I needed it.

For far too many patients, that promise has fallen short.

Senate Bill S2564 represents a chance to do better to acknowledge that patients deserve affordable, legal access to the medicine that works for them. Home cultivation isn’t about excess. It’s about health, dignity, and self-determination.

I’m grateful that the New Jersey Legislature is revisiting this issue, and I hope they move forward with rules that truly reflect patient realities.

Speaking up is how change starts. And I’ll keep speaking because patients deserve nothing less.

--- Tracey Anderson

Patient and Advocate

Contact Elucidation Strategies for cannabis education services.