Medical Marijuana: Can Weed Help You Get Food Stamps?
In Oregon, some medical marijuana users can deduct the cost of prescription pot from their income to qualify for food stamps, according to The Associated Press. 
How does this work?
In Oregon, the elderly or Social Security Disability Insurance recipients can deduct medical expenses from their income. This includes prescriptions and over-the-counter drugs, but prescription pot gets considered a medical expense, too.
This deduction includes "the fee for obtaining a state-issued medical marijuana card, the cost of growing marijuana or the expense of getting it from a pot grower," the AP notes.
Worth emphasizing: according to Oregon social services policy, only seniors or permanently disabled state residents can qualify for the exemption.
This approach still might be a bit problematic, as it doesn't go with federal policy.
Food stamps, formally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, are administered by the federal government -- which does not permit the deduction. Both California and Washington follow this guideline.
Also in the weed world, investigators are currently weighing whether cops used excessive force during the June 19 raid of a Long Beach, Calif dispensary. On that date, cops stepped on the neck of a dispensary worker and disabled a security camera with a club, according to media reports.
Follow Victoria Bekiempis @vicbekiempis.
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