This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
As parent of a child with epilepsy, I have been following the Legislature's cannabis bills closely. While I commend Rep. Brad Daw and Sen. Evan Vickers for their interest and their bill, I feel Sen. Mark Madsen is closer to hitting the bulls-eye.
Plenty of studies show cannabis works better as a whole plant. Madsen's bill, Senate Bill 73, tightly regulates "whole plant" medical cannabis, so the nightmares touted by recent op-ed pieces are not likely to happen. SB73 doesn't legalize smoking cannabis or growing your own. It regulates growing locations to prevent growing in residential zones. It's for medical purposes under a doctor's supervision, not for recreational purposes. I doubt any doctor would jeopardize their license by allowing cavalier use of cannabis under their direction.
We currently use CBD legally with a Utah Hemp registry card, but we're still seeing seizures; and no seizure is a good one. We tried a CBD-THC combo while in Colorado, and our child went seizure-free for the first time in years. Call it anecdotal, but it's a huge thing for us. Thousands of other patients could benefit from SB73, compared to hundreds from the other bill. And a recent Dan Jones poll showed 61 percent of Utahns favor the legalization of medical cannabis.
I hope Utah's legislators show they are truly representing the desire of the people, and pass SB73.
Doug Rice
West Jordan