South Carolina lawmakers are expected to renew bipartisan efforts to legalize medical marijuana in the state this year.
Two bills have been pre-filed ahead of the state legislative session beginning Tuesday that aim to legalize medical marijuana for patients with certain medical conditions under the care of a physician.
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The two competing bills that have been filed are versions of legislation previously put forward. The Put Patients First Act, co-sponsored by Democratic Minority Leader Todd Rutherford and state Rep. Jay Kilmartin (R), would authorize registered patients to use marijuana for medical purposes, employing the use of identification cards. It would also allow for dispensaries to open across the state.
Republican state Reps. Bill Herbkersman, Jerry Carter, Bill Taylor, and Jay Kilmartin, alongside Democratic Rep. Pat Henegan, are co-sponsoring the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act, which would allow patients with “debilitating medical conditions” to use medical marijuana under the care of a physician. The legislation would also create a “medical cannabis advisory board” to oversee regulation of medical marijuana in the state.
A previous version of the bill was introduced and passed the state Senate, but failed in the state House of Representatives last year.
Medical marijuana bills have been introduced in the South Carolina State House for years, but they have failed to garner enough votes. If any medical marijuana legislation passes this session, it’s unclear if Gov. Henry McMaster (R) would sign it. He has previously resisted marijuana legalization measures, both recreational and medical.
South Carolina is one of the few remaining states that does not have a medical marijuana law on the books. The medical use of marijuana is already legalized in 39 states and Washington, D.C.
More than three-fourths of South Carolina voters are in favor of medical marijuana, according to a poll from Winthrop University last November.
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“Support for medical marijuana has been growing in South Carolina with sizable majorities from both parties favoring it,” said Dr. Scott Huffmon, poll director for Winthrop.
As the medical marijuana debate plays out in South Carolina, the Biden administration is reviewing marijuana’s classification as a Schedule 1 substance along with heroin and LSD. Schedule 1 drugs are defined as drugs with a high potential for abuse.
