Medical marijuana bill stalls in North Carolina. Why cannabis advocates are frustrated

It’s been nearly 21 years since Hillsborough resident Blake Tedder nearly lost his life.

His father was flying a single-engine plane until it stalled over the Colorado Rockies. When the plane crashed into the mountains, it caught fire and the two men had more than one-third of their bodies burned.

After going into an induced coma, having a dozen skin graft surgeries and a year of intensive physical therapy, Tedder found a treatment option that could help reduce ongoing pain: cannabis.

While he’s been able to legally get marijuana prescriptions filled in Colorado and California, the same opportunity isn’t available to him in North Carolina.

A bill advanced by state lawmakers this month seeks to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes. But it excludes many of those who suffer from chronic pain. The measure passed the Senate with strong bipartisan support, but it has since stalled in the House and is unlikely to be taken up this year, according to the chamber’s leader.

Even if Senate Bill 711 were approved and signed into law, Tedder and other marijuana legalization advocates fear too many North Carolinians with serious health conditions would be excluded.

“It’s just a shame that it’s not necessarily going to be available to people like me,” Tedder said. [Read more at WRAL]