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A marijuana-derived substance believed to help control seizures in children would become legal in Alabama under a bill expected to be introduced this afternoon. Sponsored by state Rep. Mike Ball, R-Madison, the bill would allow parents of children with certain neurological and epileptic disorders to possess CBD, or cannabidiol — an oil that comes from marijuana but does not produce any intoxicating effects. "You can't get high on it, and it has no street value," Ball, a former state trooper, told AL.com Friday. "Once the public understands what this is — and we're making progress on that — I think we'll be in pretty good shape."
Democratic state Rep. Patricia Todd of Birmingham is co-sponsoring the legislation, named Carly's Law for a little girl from Inverness who suffers from a rare genetic seizure disorder. Carly's father, Pelham police officer Dustin Chandler, has been strongly promoting legalization of CBD to treat his daughter and other children who suffer from seizures that prescription medication cannot control.
Todd said the bill is so narrowly focused that she hopes other lawmakers will support it. However, she said any medical marijuana initiative remains an "uphill battle" in the state Legislature. The 2014 legislative session begins Jan. 14. "I bet you everybody in the Legislature would do everything in their power if it was their child, and that's the case we're going to make," Todd said Friday. "Many of these families have exhausted any other pharmaceutical relief. They're desperate." "Anybody who can meet these kids and deny them access to a drug that we know can relieve their suffering, you have to wonder if they have a heart," said Todd.
She said some Alabama families with sick children have already moved to Colorado and other states where doctors can legally prescribe CBD oil. Medical marijuana is legal in 19 states as well as the District of Columbia. In August, CNN reported that a Colorado child who suffered more than 1,000 seizures a month now experiences just a few after taking CBD oil twice-daily in her food. Proponents say medication derived from CBD could also treat numerous other symptoms including inflammation, pain, anxiety and even diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Chandler, the Pelham officer, started an online petition on Change.org earlier this year that asks state lawmakers and Gov. Robert Bentley to support use of CBD oil as a treatment option for children with severe forms of epilepsy. The petition had 3,274 supporters as of Friday afternoon. Ball said allowing CBD oil as a treatment for childhood seizures is not the same thing as legalizing marijuana. The oil has extremely low levels of THC, the plant's intoxicating substance, and does not generate the high associated with marijuana use, proponents say. "This is a totally separate issue from legalizing marijuana," said Ball. "I don't believe this bill will create any type of loophole that will take us down the path of legalizing marijuana."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Blog.al.com
Author: Steve Doyle
Contact: Contact Us | Alabama Media GroupAlabama Media Group
Website: Some Alabama lawmakers ready to legalize marijuana-derived oil that helps control seizures
Democratic state Rep. Patricia Todd of Birmingham is co-sponsoring the legislation, named Carly's Law for a little girl from Inverness who suffers from a rare genetic seizure disorder. Carly's father, Pelham police officer Dustin Chandler, has been strongly promoting legalization of CBD to treat his daughter and other children who suffer from seizures that prescription medication cannot control.
Todd said the bill is so narrowly focused that she hopes other lawmakers will support it. However, she said any medical marijuana initiative remains an "uphill battle" in the state Legislature. The 2014 legislative session begins Jan. 14. "I bet you everybody in the Legislature would do everything in their power if it was their child, and that's the case we're going to make," Todd said Friday. "Many of these families have exhausted any other pharmaceutical relief. They're desperate." "Anybody who can meet these kids and deny them access to a drug that we know can relieve their suffering, you have to wonder if they have a heart," said Todd.
She said some Alabama families with sick children have already moved to Colorado and other states where doctors can legally prescribe CBD oil. Medical marijuana is legal in 19 states as well as the District of Columbia. In August, CNN reported that a Colorado child who suffered more than 1,000 seizures a month now experiences just a few after taking CBD oil twice-daily in her food. Proponents say medication derived from CBD could also treat numerous other symptoms including inflammation, pain, anxiety and even diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Chandler, the Pelham officer, started an online petition on Change.org earlier this year that asks state lawmakers and Gov. Robert Bentley to support use of CBD oil as a treatment option for children with severe forms of epilepsy. The petition had 3,274 supporters as of Friday afternoon. Ball said allowing CBD oil as a treatment for childhood seizures is not the same thing as legalizing marijuana. The oil has extremely low levels of THC, the plant's intoxicating substance, and does not generate the high associated with marijuana use, proponents say. "This is a totally separate issue from legalizing marijuana," said Ball. "I don't believe this bill will create any type of loophole that will take us down the path of legalizing marijuana."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Blog.al.com
Author: Steve Doyle
Contact: Contact Us | Alabama Media GroupAlabama Media Group
Website: Some Alabama lawmakers ready to legalize marijuana-derived oil that helps control seizures
