A proposal to allow medical marijuana products in Pennsylvania cleared the state Senate Wednesday. Supporters hailed senators overwhelming approval of the measure — it was a 43 to 7 vote — as a sign that momentum is building. But the bill faces an uncertain future as it heads to the state House and, if passed there, the desk of Gov. Tom Corbett, who opposes the plan. State Sen. Mike Folmer, a Lebanon County Republican who introduced the bill, said hes optimistic. “Its been a long road to this point and we have a long road ahead of us,” he said in a press release. “But with 85 percent of Pennsylvanians supporting the use of medical cannabis to treat our most vulnerable, I am optimistic we can get this done. ”The bill would allow for the production of medical products that use cannabis oil. Those would be sold at licensed dispensaries and would only be available to people suffering from certain illnesses. Eligible patients would obtain an access card from the state Department of Health. Smoking the plant and recreational use would remain illegal. “We can help people with this bill,” Folmer said in his release, “people who previously had no hope. ”Behind the rallying call for the measure has been a group of mothers of children with forms of epilepsy that cannabis oil has been used to treat. “Obviously its moving forward, and were all very excited, said Spring Township advocate Dana Ulrich, whose daughter Lorelei, 7, has epilepsy. “But I cant say there isnt some disappointment.” The bill has narrowed from its original version and lists 10 medical conditions eligible for medical marijuana, Ulrich said. She said she would continue to fight for people with chronic pain, autism, HIV and AIDS and other conditions that would not benefit from the law as it stands. She said she doesnt feel the urgency from House leaders to vote on the bill before the legislative session ends at the end of the month. “I got into this for Lorelei,” she said. “That was my main concern. Throughout this last year, Ive met so many people who would be helped by medical cannabis. I cant turn my back on them. We have to fight for a more comprehensive bill.” Corbett, a Republican, said in an interview last week with the Reading Eagle that he will not sign the bill if it reaches his desk. He said he supports pilot programs where certain non-addictive strains of cannabis would be used to treat children. But he said he worries that broader legalization of medical marijuana would open the door to easier recreational use. “I know theyre talking about medicinal but I encourage you to go study the problems in California where they did the same thing,” Corbett said. “They have doctors out there just writing scripts left and right for basically the recreational use of marijuana.” State Sen. Pat Vance, a Cumberland County Republican and a nurse by training, was among the few senators who voted against the medical marijuana bill. The bill, she said, throws the possible future course of treatment of children suffering from severe seizure disorders into the hands of non-professionals. Several hospitals in Pennsylvania already have agreed to treat children with epilepsy with the same type of drug contained in the marijuana oil that was the centerpiece of the Senate bill, Vance said. “I understand these parents are desperate,” Vance said. “Lets just test it by professionals.” readingeagle/news/article/state-senate-passes-legislation-to-legalize-several-forms-of-medical-marijuana
Posted on: Wed, 24 Sep 2014 23:34:14 +0000
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