MACON, Ga. — Medical marijuana supporters in Georgia were hoping for something different from the federal government, not its recent ruling that cannabis should remain off-limits.
Georgians like Janea Cox of Monroe County want to be able to get medical cannabis just like other prescriptions instead of breaking the law to seek therapies for themselves or their loved ones, The Telegraph reported.
It was difficult to hear news of the August 11 ruling from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, Cox told the Macon newspaper. The agency decided that marijuana will remain on the list of most dangerous drugs, which includes heroin and LSD, The Associated Press reported.
Cox’s daughter Haleigh, 7, takes a liquid made in part from cannabis to treat the symptoms of a severe seizure disorder that can stop the little girl’s breathing. She said her daughter now sometimes goes days without a seizure, is learning things and can sit up on her own.
“Get past the stigma,” Cox told the Macon newspaper. “Our kids are not smoking this. It’s an oil and it’s saving our kids.”
Blaine Cloud, a father from Smyrna, and his wife Shannon Cloud are among the most vocal medical cannabis activists in Georgia. Their 11-year-old daughter Alaina has used medical cannabis for a seizure disorder.
“They say it has no medical benefit, but there is proof all over the world that it does,” Blaine Cloud told The Telegraph.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said its decision came after a lengthy review and consultation with the Health and Human Services Department, which said marijuana “has a high potential for abuse” and “no accepted medical use.” The decision means that pot will remain illegal for any purpose under federal law, despite laws in 25 states and District of Columbia that have legalized pot for either medicinal or recreational use.
The author of Georgia’s medical cannabis law, state Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon, said it’s time for the state to make sure residents can get safe, regulated medical cannabis under the oversight of doctors.
