In this edition of On the Record, WRAL New’s Chris Lovingood spoke with state senator Paul Lowe, D-Nash County, and Josh Biddix, a veteran and advocate for medical marijuana’s legalization, about it’s stigma, the benefits of medical marijuana and what challenges the bill leaglizing it in the state face.
Medical marijuana will be back up for discussion this legislative session. It’s back with the same name: The N.C. Compassionate Care Act.
It was one of the first bills to be filed, and a Raleigh CBD shop manager said she hopes it gets passed this time around. “A lot of people like them for pain relief. We actually do get a lot of clients that went through chemo and had cancer or replaced a hipbone, and they need some pain relief,” Abby Nauffts said.
Nauffts manages and bakes goods for Redhead Hemp. At the shop, she explained the strict limits they follow in order to operate.
“The reason our store is able to sell the products we do is thanks to the 2018 farm bill. Anything hemp-derived is totally legal. That’s where Delta 8 comes from, as well as Delta 9, but ours is limited on how much we are able to put in,” Nauffts said. “It has to be below .3% on a dry-weight basis. As long as we stay below those limits, it’s totally legal to sell the same THC you would find anywhere else.” If medical marijuana becomes legal in North Carolina, people with certain medical conditions, like cancer, could get prescribed the drug.
“I have a lot of veterans, a lot of people I know, who this could make a big difference in their life going forward,” Rep. Garland Pierce (D-Hoke) said. While some lawmakers are more optimistic this time around, not everyone is hoping for the bill to be passed. Sen. Jim Burgin (R-Harnett) previously spoke publicly about his opposition to the bill in June of 2022.
“I appreciate the sponsors desire to help those who are suffering with physical or mental health issues. Marijuana does not treat the ailment. it only masks the symptoms,” Burgin said.
WRAL News went to Burgin’s office multiple times and sent an email, asking for his thoughts on the resurrected bill.
Burgin ultimately said he didn’t think it would be fair to give a formal statement before the bill made it further through the process. All but 13 states in the U.S. have a medical marijuana program. South Dakota and Alabama have programs, but those programs are not operating yet.
If the act passes, North Carolina’s laws would be more strict compared to those in other states, such as controls over signage and the list of approved conditions.
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