Medical marijuana advances again at North Carolina Senate

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Marijuana legalization in North Carolina for medical purposes is advancing again within the state Senate, less than a year after a very similar measure setting a structure for its sale and consumption passed the chamber by a wide margin.

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Tuesday for the legislation, which was refiled last month as the new two-year General Assembly session began. The measure cleared the panel on a voice vote after the passage of several amendments, one of which is designed to ensure sales access in rural areas.

While the new version is likely to clear the full Senate sometime next week, the future of medical marijuana in North Carolina will depend on its level of support in the House. That chamber declined to take up the Senate measure in 2022. Speaker Tim Moore, a Republican, suggested recently that support for legalizing pot for the treatment of medical conditions is possible given the right restrictions in the measure.

Sen. Bill Rabon, a Brunswick County Republican who shepherded the previous and current measures, has pitched to colleagues the legalization of smoking or consuming cannabis as a way to give relief to people with pain or illnesses and from whom their doctors say they could benefit. [Read More @ AP News]