South Carolina lawmakers urge GOP-backed medical marijuana reform

Advocates and lawmakers in South Carolina are in favor of legalizing medical marijuana and are urging the state leadership to pass a Republican-backed reform bill before an impending legislative deadline.

According to Marijuana Moment, the urgency of enacting the reform this year at a press conference this year is emphasized by the deadline for the bill to be moved from the Senate to the House for consideration.

Sen. Tom Davis R defended the bill, responding to criticism that it was not thoroughly examined before being placed on special order for consideration. He noted that the S.C. Compassionate Care Act had been a subject of numerous hearings in over a dozen subcommittees over the past eight years.

This should have been done years ago if they want to continue to war on cannabis. How can we get the sick, dying, and ill off the battlefield? Cody Callarman, a Marine veteran and founder of an SC CBD and hemp company, spoke at the press conference.

The amendment to the legislation, which was recently referred to the State Committee on Medical Affairs, would allow patients to access marijuana sold by state-licensed dispensaries upon a doctor's recommendation for treatment of qualifying conditions.

Patients with medical cannabis recommendation can include cancer, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD Crohn's disease and autism, among others.

It would allow for cannabis to be obtained only through selected pharmacies, and smoking would be illegal.

If a person works in public safety, commercial transportation or commercial machinery positions, they could not use medical marijuana or receive a cannabis card.

More than three-fourths of South Carolina voters are in favor of medical cannabis, according to a poll conducted by Winthrop University in 2022. The support for medical marijuana has been growing in South Carolina with sizable majority of the voters favoring it, said Scott Huffmon, director of the Winthrop Poll.

If the bill doesn't pass the Senate by Thursday, it could still be passed, but it wouldn't be able to advance to the House until 2024, according to Marijuana Moment.

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