OTTAWA -- If the dope is bad, don't blame your dealer; blame the government -- at least in Canada.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA Should It Be Legal? Vote Post Your View State Laws

Some Canadian patients receiving government marijuana for health conditions complain that the weed is too weak. And a government contractor admits there are improvements to be made.

Prairie Plant Systems of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, grows the stuff for Health Canada. Company representative Brent Zettl said the medicinal pot was never tested for potency. He said it's a very early product and conceded they haven't hit the mark yet.

Some patients complain the pot is so bad that it's not fit for human consumption.

Meanwhile, a researcher writing in this week's issue of the British Medical Journal says that while the use of cannabis is not harmless, its link with death is still not established.

He said exposure to smoke is generally much lower in cannabis than in tobacco cigarette smokers, and cannabis does not contain nicotine, a chemical contained in tobacco that is addicting and contributes to the risk of heart disease.

But he said existing studies on the dangers of cannabis haven't followed users into later adult life, so there may not be enough data to associate the drug with chronic health infections.