Letter: Medical cannabis is an urgent issue

On Sept. 1, I went to the Jones County Courthouse for a town-hall meeting to confront Sen. Chuck Grassley on the CARERS Act (S. 683) that he has blocked.

I expected the response from Grassley that I got, 'they can't let it go through because of the banking regulations.” I had previously asked the senator if there wasn't a sense of urgency about getting access of cannabis/CBD oil for veterans especially with the recent suicide of an Iowa Marine veteran who had been turned away by the Iowa City VA and the another veteran killing himself on VA property in Long Island.

The Senator did admit that CBD oil works and we know that 87 percent of Iowans approve of medical cannabis. So who is Sen. Grassley representing when he takes the side of Big Pharma and prohibitionists and blocks the CARERS Act? He seems more interested in protecting big corporations while Iowa veterans and young moms who are caring for their babies become criminals.

Veterans are killing themselves at the rate of 22 a day. We can't seem to get anyone to understand that. It is another news blip, another statistic. It seems like we are on our own - we have to fight big lobby interests, the government, elected officials, the VA and our own minds every day to survive.

I will not vote for a senator who thinks so little of veterans, kids and Iowans.

Jon Custis

Anamosa