Alabama Senate approves plan to legalize medical cannabis

Last week, the Alabama Senate approved a bill to legalize medical cannabis for certain medical conditions by a vote of 22 to 11.

The bill is sponsored by Republican Senator Tim Melson, chairman of the Study Commission on the Cannabis Alabama Medical Association. A similar bill failed last year.

«There could have been more organized efforts to slow him down, and I'm glad that wasn't the case,» he declared Tim Melson after the vote. «We tried to address some very serious situations. I don’t take this bill lightly. It’s a big step for Alabama, and there’s still a long way to go.»

Last December, The Commission voted 12 to 6 in support of the bill. Following this recommendation, Tim Melson introduced a bill to legalize medical cannabis, which would make Alabama the 34th state to take such a step. Melson’s proposal would create another commission, which would be responsible for establishing and administering a patient registration system, issuing medical cannabis cards, and granting licenses for the cultivation, processing, distribution, transportation, and testing of cannabis. The commission would also be responsible for regulating the activities of licensees and the state’s medical cannabis program.

The bill proposes that patients aged 19 and older suffering from, among other conditions, anxiety or panic disorder, autism, cancer-related cachexia, nausea or vomiting, weight loss or chronic pain, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy, and HIV/AIDS, be eligible for a medical cannabis prescription.

Last year, the bill was also passed by the Senate before failing in the House of Representatives. Following last Thursday’s vote in the Senate, the bill is now moving on to the House of Representatives. The House speaker, also a Republican, has «expressed skepticism about the legislation» and has not committed to the new bill, though he did not «list any specific concerns.».

Cannabis is not decriminalized in Alabama either despite numerous attempts, making it one of the most conservative states on this issue in the United States.