On Monday, many parents breathed a collective sigh of relief when the State Assembly approved a bill and sent it to Governor Jerry Brown for signing. The bill would allow them to treat their children with medical marijuana in schools. Although marijuana rules for children with medical conditions have been around since the mid-1990s, they have never included schools.
In the now past, parents would have to take their children out of school to give them a dose of cannabis or meet older kids somewhere off campus. It was frustrating, time-consuming, impractical, and a very grave risk to life in cases of severe urgency. To complete its yearly business well ahead of its Friday deadline, this is just one of the many bills passed by the Legislature on Monday.
Legalization of Medical Marijuana in Schools
According to the bill, marijuana remains illegal to children in smoking form. It must be in any other non-smoking form, such as vaping or ingesting it. Furthermore, only children with existing and valid medical marijuana recommendations from California-licensed doctors will be able to use it in school. However, school districts can decide for themselves if they want to opt into the policy. It does not force them.
Democratic Senator, Jerry Hill, responsible for carrying the bill, believes that his legislation will help children and teenagers suffering severe medical disabilities enormously. In fact, a teenager from his South San Francisco district inspired this bill, one who suffered nearly 50 daily seizures until he received a recommendation to use medical marijuana.
In Santa Rosa, The Press Democrat reported that a court ruled a five-year old girl could take cannabis oil to kindergarten with her in order to treat a rare form of childhood epilepsy. Although temporary while the judge weighs a final ruling, it still stands. The school district attempted to ban her from coming to school with her medicine, which her family considers a violation of protection for disabled students.
Other Legislative Actions
The Legislature approved other bills on Monday too. The Senate voted to prohibit marijuana-infused alcoholic beverages, for one. Ken Cooley, a Democrat Assemblyman from Rancho Cordova, saw bartenders mixing CBD oil, a marijuana extract, into cocktails and introduced the bill. Now it finds its way on to the Assembly.
Additionally, legislation passed through the Assembly to enact measures that make mail-in ballot counts valid and accurate, even when sloppy signatures are likely among large portions of voters. Before simply discarding ballots if signatures differ from those on voter registration files, counties must now check first with voters.
Furthermore, the Assembly passed a specific bill banning folks from buying more than one long-gun within a monthly timeframe, with a few exceptions. For handguns, the same prohibitive legislation already exists. The bill is on its return journey to the state Senate. If another bill on route to Brown passes through local government, it would further limit gun ownership for those with a mental disorder.
Finally, the Assembly approved the piloting of so-called safe injection zones in San Francisco, places where people can go to use illegal substances, such as heroin and methamphetamine, under a watchful medical eye. The goal of this legislative measure is to lower deaths from an overdose as much as possible. Right now, the bill is on its way to the desk in Governor Brown’s office.
Final Thoughts
Marijuana legalization in California has opened minds worldwide. Now, not only does allow the medical use of cannabis in school proves a necessity, it is crucial to upholding human rights. The worries of parents are now somewhat over. Children can now carry their own medicine to school with them, provided they are old and mature enough to use it on their own.
For real! The epelipic students should have access to any medicine which helps them!!