United States: Historically conservative Alabama allows medical cannabis

Alabama becomes the 37th U.S. state to authorize the use of cannabis for medical purposes. And it's a powerful symbol, given that Alabama is such a conservative state. On Monday, Republican Governor Kay Ivey signed the Darren Wesley ‘Ato’ Hall Compassion Act,. Within a year and a half, 15 diseases will be treatable with the plant in this popular southern state, including cancer, motor neurone disease, sickle cell anemia and depression. In return, patients will have to be accredited by the state, and pay a card at $65 (about €53).

«It's a sensitive subject, no doubt about it, reacted the governor in a press release. It's also a subject that's being studied on an ongoing basis. We've set up a study group to look at medical cannabis. I'm interested in its potential for these chronic illnesses, but also its role in improving the quality of life of those living their last moments.»

This brand-new law regulates the use of cannabis by patients. In particular, it bans flowers, whether consumed in joints or vaporizers. Only tablets, capsules, candies or spray oils. To avoid making « The law also requires candy to have a unique flavor. Finally, only twelve sites will be able to produce cannabis, and twelve others will be able to sell it.

Republican Senate and House, 62 % for Trump in 2020

In the United States, medical cannabis transcends the right-left divide, where the right opposes it, and the left demands it. The proof: Alabama is a historically conservative state, a former member of the Southern and slaveholding Confederacy. In 2020, it voted 62 % to re-elect Donald Trump to the White House. In local politics, the Republican party outrageously dominates Congress. In the Senate, the Grand old party has 27 seats, against 8 for the Democrats. In the House of Representatives, it relies on 77 congressmen, against 28 Democrats.

What's more, this new law legalizing medical cannabis comes from... a Republican, Senator Tim Melson. This elected official from the town of Florence, in northern Alabama, succeeded in convincing his Republican colleagues. In February, they voted 21 to 8 in favor of the text. In the House of Representatives, another Republican, Mike Ball, succeeded in signing the bill into law. touchdown victory, with 68 «yes» votes against 34 "no" votes.

Nor does Governor Ivey have a pro-legalization profile. This 76-year-old Republican elected official has signed several executive orders authorizing firearms in schools, accelerating the death penalty for convicted felons, refusing adoption to homosexual couples... Yet this Baptist Christian has been convinced of the positive effects of medical cannabis. A sign of her support: this law is called the Darren Wesley ‘Ato’ Hall Compassion Act in memory of the son of Democratic Congresswoman Laura Hall. Her son died of AIDS, a condition that prompted her to propose the legalization of medical cannabis several years ago.