Florida Legalizes Boring Medical Weed That Doesn't Even Get You High
Today, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed a bill that legalizes Charlotte's Web, a strain of cannabis that doesn't get you high, for treating conditions like cancer and epilepsy.
The low-THC strain was developed in 2011 to treat patients who want weed's medical benefits without nasty side effects like feeling awesome or laughing a lot. It's particularly promising for children with chronic conditions — whose parents, understandably, might be interested in easing their symptoms without getting them stoned.
Scott said in a statement:
As a father and grandfather, you never want to see kids suffer. The approval of Charlotte's Web will ensure that children in Florida who suffer from seizures and other debilitating illnesses will have the medication needed to improve their quality of life.
Patients will be allowed to vaporize Charlotte's Web but not smoke it. Amendment 2, an initiative slated to appear on Florida ballots in November, could legalize medical marijuana more broadly.
Incidentally, the same day that Scott legalized weed that doesn't get you high, he also banned a few substances that do: methylenedioxymethcathinone, methylenedioxypyrovalerone, and methylmethcathinone — otherwise known as the stuff found in bath salts.