WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Kansas is now encircled by states which are—or will be—providing legal access to medical marijuana after Nebraska voters approved medical use on Tuesday.
In Nebraska, the issue that brought the medical marijuana issue to voters may face legal challenges. If it is implemented, Kansas will become one of the few states in the region that has not legalized medical use.
This fall, a special committee for medical marijuana in Kansas met twice to discuss how the issue could be debated in the coming legislative session. One lawmaker on that committee tells KSN that no recommendation has emerged from those meetings, but they’ve discussed the potential tax revenue and heard from those on both sides of the issue.
“The interim committee asked for another day of meetings, and they’ll have to meet in early January before the session starts to hear a little bit more updates and to provide some direction to the rest of the legislature on what a medical marijuana bill looks like. But that date still needs to be approved by the Legislative Coordinating Committee,” said Dennis “Boog” Highberger (D- Lawrence).
KSN also spoke with the president of the Kansas Cannabis Coalition, who feels that now is the time to approve medical legalization.
“We’re going to be just like this little island, and it won’t be in a good way because people are going to three other states, and they’re using cannabis,” said Cheryl Kumberg, the president of Kansas Cannabis Coalition.
Legislative efforts on medical cannabis in Kansas have stalled for years.
“Now we’re surrounded by states would legalize marijuana,” said Highberger.
Highberger says that in their past two meetings, they considered what other states were doing.
“What works in Utah is there are state licenses, growers, and processors, and they don’t have they don’t have dispensaries and retail. They have actual pharmacies, but those pharmacies only sell cannabis products,” he said.
Kansas Cannabis Coalition is saying it’s trying to get patient access for medical use, especially for the senior population, saying these treatments are available across state lines.
“It seems like the legislators want a lot of control over something like marijuana, and this, the medical program, would be the perfect venue for that. It’s supervised,” said Kumberg.
Opponents cite health and public safety risks. At a hearing last month, law enforcement said other states continue to see issues even after legalization.
“When it passed, there was 8,000 grow operations that turned up in Oklahoma. Currently, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics has shut down over 5,000 grows,” said Sheriff Scott Braun with the Kansas Sheriffs Association.
KSN reached out to the Attorney General. He said Kansas will continue to enforce laws prohibiting marijuana use, saying, “The fact that marijuana advocates spent vast sums of money persuading voters in Nebraska to adopt an initiative does not change the law in Kansas.”
KSN also reached out to Sedgwick County Sheriff Easter, who said if a bill for legalizing medical use is introduced, the Kansas Sheriff’s Association will more than likely oppose it unless the FDA approves it with a real doctor prescribing it and a pharmacy distributing it.