State representatives said that after discussions among legislators that the sickle cell anemia will be added to the list of maladies that is covered under the Georgia House Bill 1.
If the the bill passes, it would decriminalize medical marijuana in the state of Georgia in the form of cannabis oil, said state representative Allen Peake.
African American legislators and sickle cell organizations were previously outraged that the disease that mostly impacts blacks was removed from the list.
“Members of our house, who came and expressed a real desire to include sickle cell disease, on the list of conditions, we debated that, and I think we’re going to come to the conclusion that it makes sense to add sickle cell disease as a disease that could potentially benefit from medical cannabis, so I think we’re going to add that tomorrow (Wednesday) by amendment,” Peake told 13WMAZ.
The list of illnesses covered under the current version of the bill includes cancer, seizure disorders, Multiple Sclerosis, ALS (Lou Gherig’s disease, Crohn’s, Parkinson’s, Mitochondrial disease, and Fibromyalgia.
Peake said the list was developed, in part, by looking at other states that have legalized medical marijuana. He says, in all of those states, patients with cancer, seizure disorders, and Multiple Sclerosis are eligible for the drug.
Peake expects the 10 a.m. Wednesday meeting to go on in spite of early government office closures in Atlanta.
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