Florida Governor Rick Scott signed a law allowing for the limited use of a special strain of marijuana to treat epileptic seizures and other diseases on Monday, according to Reuters.
State lawmakers passed the measure this spring with bipartisan support after impassioned appeals from parents seeking access to the form of marijuana known as "Charlotte's Web," named for a Colorado girl whose epileptic seizures have shown some response to the drug, Reuters reported.
The Florida law allows use of the drug for Florida's estimated 125,000 epilepsy sufferers, but will also be used to treat cancer and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig's disease, according to Reuters. The Charlotte's Web substance is not for smoking and is specially cultivated to be very low in tetrahydrocannabinol, the element that gets users high.
"As a father and grandfather, you never want to see kids suffer," Scott, a Republican, said in a statement, according to Reuters. "I am proud to stand today with families who deserve the ability to provide their children with the best treatment available."
The "Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act" will severely limit marijuana sales, keeping them well below those in Colorado and Washington state, where recreational marijuana has been legalized, Reuters reported.
After Jan. 1, 2015, doctors will be allowed to prescribe low-THC marijuana treatment for state residents with epilepsy, cancer and afflictions causing "seizures or severe and persistent muscle spasms," according to Reuters. The bill also appropriates $1 million for medical research in medical uses of marijuana.
"I'm thankful. When we began the legislative session, I did not feel the governor would support any marijuana legislation," said state Representative Katie Edwards, a South Florida Democrat who co-sponsored the legislation, according to Reuters.
The new law limits production to a few growers at nurseries that have been in business for 30 years or more, Reuters reported.
