11/30/2022 ​Timing is key! With General Assembly 2023 just around the corner, legislators will be attending a caucus retreat this weekend (the First Weekend of December). It’s here, behind closed doors, where legislative priorities will be discussed and decided for the upcoming session.  In years past we’ve been overlooked despite overwhelming support and public opinion. ​Will you help us ensure that Marijuana has a place at the table in January by emailing your State Senator today?

​As your constituent, I urge you to support medical cannabis and decriminalization for Kentucky in the 2023 General Assembly.

Presently, more than three dozen states authorize the licensed production and dispensing of medical cannabis. Twenty-One states including Washington DC and Guam permit similar commercial activities and retail sales of marijuana to all adults. Yet, year after year Kentuckians are denied access to the same medicine. This situation is untenable. It is unconscionable to subject Kentuckians to arrest and criminal penalties for using cannabis, medically or otherwise. 

Ninety-three percent of U.S. voters think marijuana should be legal for medical use, including 85% of Republicans, more than 95% of Democrats and independents, and more than 92% of each age group. 

Medical marijuana is proven to be effective in the treatment of a variety of debilitating medical conditions. A vast majority of Americans recognize the legitimate medical benefits of marijuana, as well as a large number of medical organizations. It is far less harmful and poses fewer negative side effects than most prescription drugs — especially opiate-based painkillers — and patients often find it to be a more effective treatment. 
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Regulating the cultivation and sale of medical marijuana would ensure patients have legal, safe, and reliable access to medical marijuana. Patients should not have to resort to the potentially dangerous underground market to access their medicine. By regulating medical marijuana, we can ensure it is free of pesticides, molds, and other impurities, and patients will know exactly what they are getting. 

Our veterans deserve better access to the medicines that work best for them and should not be discriminated against for doing so.

Lastly, in order to better serve the citizens of Kentucky, a decriminalization bill must also be passed. It is unethical, unprincipled, and indefensible to allow the use of medical marijuana while allowing others to continue to serve time for doing the same. 

I strongly urge you to support a robust medical cannabis program and decriminalization for Kentucky. I will continue to contact you throughout the session so that this issue stays at the top of your inbox.

Thank you. I’ll be in touch.