Louisiana medical marijuana bill signed
BATON ROUGE Katie Corkern couldnt stop smiling Thursday, confident that relief for her sons uncontrollable seizures may finally be near.
Corkern, her son Connor and the rest of her family stood near Gov. John Bel Edwards as he signed a bill to kick-start and expand the Louisiana medical marijuana program, which has been slow to begin because of regulatory hurdles.
Im very excited for the future. And Im very excited for all the people this medicine can help, the mother and advocate said after the bill signing.
The governor said the program will have a dramatic effect on Louisianas families.
It simply is unacceptable to tell parents of kids especially that if they want to make available to their kids the medicine that is being recommended by their doctors in order to achieve some better quality of life, some reduction in pain or other symptoms, that they have to move, Edwards said.
The bill by Republican Sen. Fred Mills, a St. Martin Parish pharmacist, will broaden the existing program to cover more diseases and make regulatory changes aimed at getting marijuana in an oil form that cant be smoked into patients hands more quickly.
Sheriffs and district attorneys opposed the bill as opening the door to eventually legalizing recreational marijuana.
Edwards described the measure as having tight controls so it wont become a medication that is recommended for every ailment that is out there.
Lawmakers sided with parents who said their childrens medical conditions could be helped with therapeutic marijuana, who talked of moving to Colorado to lessen their childrens suffering and who launched billboards and social media campaigns for the bill.
Corkern and her son, who has a rare brain disorder that causes repeated seizures, were on one of those billboards and were a regular presence around the Louisiana Capitol.
Connors neurologist in New Orleans feels (medical marijuana) is the last resort for him in order to control his seizures, because weve obviously tried everything and the meds just arent working for him. Theyre making his body waste away, Corkern said.
The Corkerns are from Edwards hometown of Amite and attend the same church as the governor, and they had a significant advocate on their side the governors wife Donna who attended committee hearings with Katie Corkern and who was on hand for the bill signing.
In terms of lobbying the governor, nobody did that more effectively ...
