Gov. Wolf Vows To Support Pa. Senate's Medical Marijuana Bill
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Governor Tom Wolf today met with parents who say their children's health could be greatly improved - if they had access to medical marijuana.
The governor says he's all for legalizing it.
"We now have a governor who is supportive of this as well, so we're really going to get a bill done," said Pennsylvania Sen. Daylin Leach, a Democrat representing Delaware and Montgomery Counties.
Leach and Sen. Mike Folmer, a Lebanon County Republican, have introduced a broader version of the legislation they first introduced last fall.
That original bill overwhelmingly passed the Senate, but died when the House of Representatives didn't act on it.
Also standing in their way back then - Governor Tom Corbett, who opposed legalizing medical marijuana.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is a bi-partisan issue. This is not a red issue or a blue issue. This is probably more of a purple issue. It's an issue that's about people's health," added Republican Folmer.
The new bill would expand the list of authorized medical conditions to give doctors more leeway.
It also expands delivery methods to include smoking and vaporization, as well as extracted oils, edible products and ointments.
"The way to do this is to try to do it thoughtfully and intelligently, making sure that it's regulated appropriately so we're doing everything we can to prevent it from being abused," noted Leach.
In a statement, Wolf says: "We should not deny a physician's ability to recommend medical marijuana treatment for Pennsylvanians suffering from seizures, those affected by PTSD, cancer patients affected by chemotherapy, and Pennsylvanians suffering from many other ailments and conditions that could benefit from this effective doctor-prescribed treatment."
"I this was a derivative of any other plant - the orchid, or the yucca, or the cactus - it would be in every CVS in the country for decades already," added Leach.
"This is not about the high. This is not about recreation, this is about medicine," said Folmer.
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