Medical Marijuana Changes Approved By GA Lawmakers

ATLANTA, GA — The Georgia General Assembly has passed legislation that would bring changes to medical marijuana use and vaping, and would also reclassify low TCH oil.

Senate Bill 220, deemed the "Putting Georgia's Patients First Act," crossed its final hurdle Monday when the Georgia House passed it, 144-21. As of early Friday afternoon, Gov. Brian Kemp had yet to sign the bill into law.

The new 24-page measure renames low THC oil as medical cannabis, eliminates the 5 percent THC cap by allowing use of medical marijuana products containing a total of 12,000 milligrams or less of THC and permits medical marijuana to be consumed through vaping by anyone at least 21-years-old.

The latter would be enacted no later than Jan. 1, 2027. Currently, vaping medical marijuana is illegal.

In Georgia, medical marijuana can be used to treat seizures, terminal cancers, Parkinson's disease and post-traumatic stress disorder; but, SB 220 would reduce limitations and add lupus to eligible conditions, CBS News reported.

Marijuana use for recreational purposes would still be unlawful under SB 220, according to the text.

Sen. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth, expressed concerns about facets of the bill.

“This is not Low THC Oil to solve the problems of little girls that have serious medical conditions that modern medical science cannot otherwise solve," he told WABE. "This is something different. It’s about getting people high on THC with concentrated THC into their lungs. That’s a very different proposition.”

Contrastingly, Shannon Cloud said the improvements provided through SB 220 are necessary. Cloud is the reportedly the mother of a 20-year-old daughter who battles seizures and is a registered medical marijuana patient.

“It allows more flexibility for patients and doctors to access what’s really going to work for them, taking away the really tight restrictions," she told WABE.

After the Georgia General Assembly passed "Georgia's Hope Act" in April 2019, the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission was tapped as the overseer of the licensing and sale of low THC oil and the dispensing of medical marijuana to registered patients.

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, the following groups of people can apply for a medical marijuana card:

• An adult who has one or more of the diseases specified in the law;
• Legal guardians of an adult who has one or more of the diseases specified in the law;
• Parents or legal guardians of a minor child who has one or more of the diseases specified in the new law. A doctor's certification is required.

Medical marijuana use is legal in 47 states, three U.S. territories and the District of Columbia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This includes the entire Southeast.