Kentucky Legislature Reviews Medical Cannabis Bill

March 08, 2018, Kentucky

Advocates of medical cannabis in Kentucky put their case before a legislative body this week through a bill. They are claiming that MMJ is as a harmless substitute to addictive opioid sedatives. The hearing was conducted by the judiciary committee of the state’s legislature.

The committee is tasked to formulate strict regulations regarding the use of medical marijuana. It would be then the prerogative of counties and cities in Kentucky to allow the use of medical cannabis.

For now, the committee hasn’t taken any vote on the measure. According to the head of committee, the bill will be reviewed further and then put up for a vote.

Supporters of the bill were very animated at the end of the hearing when the committee admitted the therapeutic benefits of cannabis for different type of chronic ailments. President of the MMJ advocate group Kentuckians for Medicinal Marijuana, Jaime Montalvo, airs his thoughts on the bill.

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He reiterates that they are striving to get MMJ bill approved to address the grievances of patients who are in need of cannabis to alleviate their ailments. The MMJ bill has been devised by the efforts of a dedicated team headed by Alison Lundergan Grimes, a Democrat Secretary of State.

John Sims Jr, the state representative who is the main sponsor of the bill, told that allowing MMJ would help in fighting the widespread substance abuse of opioid painkillers in the state. Proponents of MMJ also quote the reports showing a sharp dip in the use of opioid in the state where use of medical cannabis has been legalized.

A Democrat lawmaker told the committee that not allowing MMJ in the state had created a medicinal refuge crisis where patients and their loved one were feeling helpless and exhausted in acquiring appropriate treatment options.

In this week’s hearing, the committee heard the arguments of lawmakers who are in favor of legalizing MMJ. The bill will be put for vote before the floor after hearing the reservations of the opponents of this cannabis reform. The reassuring bit is that the bill has more than 20 co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle.

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The proposed bill, if passed, will come with strict regulations. The potential users of MMJ will have to grow through several steps to acquire the permit. Patients will have to prove that they are suffering from qualifying medical conditions. The eligible patients would be issued a state-sanctioned ID to get their cannabis medicines from the approved MMJ dispensaries.

From cultivation, processing, distribution to the operations of dispensaries, each facet of MMJ legalization would be licensed and an excised tax will be imposed at the retail level.

Participation in the MMJ program would be optional for local administrations. Counties and cities will decide for themselves whether or not to go on with local operations of MMJ. In case they don’t comply with state MMJ laws, residents can push for the legalization through local ballot. MMJ has already been legalized in 21 states and known to have no detrimental side effects. Unlike opioid options, it’s free of addictive characteristics.

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