The N.C. House took a first step Tuesday on legislation to legalize medical marijuana.
The state Senate has already approved the medical marijuana bill, but the House has so far been more reluctant to pass the measure. That appears to be changing.
The House Health Committee held its first hearing on the bill Tuesday, and while it didn鈥檛 take a vote yet, no legislators spoke against the proposal.
Medical marijuana has a powerful supporter: Senate Rules Chairman . The Brunswick County Republican told the committee that he used marijuana to get through colon cancer treatment. His doctor recommended it even though it was illegal.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the only reason I鈥檓 alive today. There鈥檚 no science behind it, but I can tell you I know. I know that tens of thousands of people in this state would benefit just as I did," he said.
Rabon, a veterinarian, said he didn鈥檛 end up buying marijuana illegally because a supply appeared in his mailbox after he told friends he wanted to try it. He managed to get through chemotherapy treatments without missing work.
鈥淚'd go home, I would light up a joint 鈥� or whatever you call it. I never smoked in my life, so I wasn't very good at it,鈥� he recalled. 鈥淎nd I'd take about three puffs of marijuana. My symptoms would go away before you could bat your eye.鈥�
I鈥檝e never heard a committee room as quiet as when told the story of his own medical cannabis use during cancer treatment. Credits it with saving his life.
— Alex Miller (@AlexMillerNC)
Rabon鈥檚 bill would keep production and distribution strictly controlled. It would only be available to patients with debilitating or terminal conditions such as cancer, AIDS and post-traumatic stress disorder.
An appointed oversight board, called the Compassionate Use Advisory Board, would have the power to add additional conditions to the list. Doctors prescribing marijuana would be required to take a 10-hour class. Patients would be issued an ID card, and no one would be allowed inside marijuana dispensaries without a card.
The House declined to consider a similar bill last year. But Rep. , R-Forsyth and a co-chair of the House Health Committee, said he became more supportive after he and several colleagues took a trip to Mississippi, a GOP-led state that has legalized medical marijuana. The group toured a facility that processes marijuana.
鈥淭he regulators make sure that even the dust that was on the floor had to be accounted for,鈥� Lambeth said. 鈥淭here was no question about accountability and the regulation in this particular plant we were in.鈥�
Opponents of the bill worry that it鈥檚 a first step toward legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes. Rabon says that鈥檚 not the case, and he pointed to states like Hawaii where medical marijuana has been legal for years without a successful push for recreational legalization.
Rep. Allen Chesser, R-Nash and an Iraq War veteran, said he鈥檚 excited about what marijuana can do for fellow veterans suffering from PTSD.
鈥淲e have now lost more veterans to suicide than we lost in the last two wars we fought, so this is a personal issue for me,鈥� he said.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the House Health Committee hadn鈥檛 yet scheduled its next meeting to vote on the bill 鈥� a necessary step for it to advance through the legislative process.
