Gov. Nathan Deal will sign the medical marijuana bill at the state Capitol Thursday morning, another compassionate step for families seeing their children suffer from severe seizures.
A large crowd will gather at the Capitol steps for the event, with the legislation becoming law upon Deal’s signature. That will be another gratifying moment for Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon, who led a two-year fight for the legislation’s passage after meeting Haleigh Cox, a young child who nearly died from a disorder that caused more than 200 seizures a day. Haleigh moved with her family to Colorado and received cannabis oil treatment that greatly reduced her seizures.
While the legislation will allow families like Haleigh’s to return home to Georgia, others covered by House Bill 1 will still face the risk of federal prosecution by having to go out of state for their cannabis oil, Peake told InsiderAdvantage Georgia.
“We knew all along that there would be challenges for our families, and until we have an in-state cultivation processing and delivery system, those challenges are going to remain,” Peake said.
The legislation, he continued, “is not the ideal solution, not the best one for all of our citizens, but it’s a great first step that provides them access and provides immunity.”
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