Only 13 states have not legalized marijuana, two of which are Kentucky and Indiana.
Lignieville, Kentucky — A wave of green is sweeping across the country.
In fact, several states in Tuesday’s midterm elections had referendums on marijuana on their ballots.
Only 13 states have not legalized marijuana, two of which are Kentucky and Indiana.
That’s despite polls showing a majority of Kentuckians support medical marijuana.
“Our commission found that 98.5% of Kentuckians support legalizing medical marijuana,” said Kristin Wilcox.
Wilcox is a member of Governor Andy Beshear’s Medical Cannabis Advisory Board, co-founder of Kentucky Moms For Medical Cannabis, and the mother of a child with Dravet Syndrome, a very rare condition.
Her daughter, Shelby, suffers from severe seizures.
“She was eating thousands a day,” Wilcox said. “She’s been having seizures for 14 hours.”
Shelby is in a clinical trial and still takes the FDA-approved Epidiolex twice daily, which contains cannabis oil.
The medication didn’t stop the seizures completely, but “it made them shorter,” Wilcox said.
Wilcox complains that the financial side effects of Epidiolex cost $45,520 a year, paid for through Medicaid.
She says other states have legal medical marijuana products that could be of great help to her daughter, and should be available in Kentucky, she says.
“My spotlight is on Senate leadership,” Wilcox said.
The medical marijuana bill is stalled in the Senate under Senate Speaker Robert Stivers and House Majority Leader Damon Thayer, even though it has already passed the House.
“I think medical marijuana is a slippery slope for recreational marijuana, but I’m not,” Thayer told KET Jan. 4.
“More research is needed,” Stivers said at KET on April 18.
“They just don’t listen to us,” said Julie Cantwell. “I don’t think they care that people are sick.”
Cantwell is another co-founder of Kentucky Moms For Medical Cannabis.
Every two months she travels out of state to buy legal medical marijuana for her 22-year-old son, Preston.
“Parents have to break the law to get[the kids]to help,” Cantwell insisted. “We have to worry about leaving one state and returning to another.”
Her son, who has drug-resistant epilepsy, “had his last seizure on Oct. 12, 2019,” Preston said after taking medical marijuana.
he reaps the benefits.
“It’s totally medicine for me,” he said.
Preston is delivering this message to politically dissident lawmakers.
“Hurry and get off the road so many can be healthy and happy,” he said.
Stivers was not immediately available for comment but agreed to be interviewed at a later date.
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