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Va. governor OKs marijuana oils for treating epilepsy

  RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has signed into law a measure that allows the use of derivatives of the marijuana plant for treating severe epilepsy. The governor signed the bill Thursday at a Capitol ceremony featuring families with epileptic children who have suffered debilitating side effects from taking legal drugs. It’s…

Shareen Nicholson

 

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, center, holds Haley Smith, 14, from White Stone, Va., on his lap and smiles at Haley's mom, Lisa, right, after signing HB1445 and SB1235, the bills that allow the possession of marijuana oils to help treat patients with epilepsy, during a ceremony in the Governor's conference room at the state Capitol in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015. One of the bill patrons, Sen. Dave W. Marsden, D-Fairfax, is just behind McAuliffe. (AP Photo/Richmond Times-Dispatch, Bob Brown)
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, center, holds Haley Smith, 14, from White Stone, Va., on his lap and smiles at Haley’s mom, Lisa, right, after signing HB1445 and SB1235, the bills that allow the possession of marijuana oils to help treat patients with epilepsy, during a ceremony in the Governor’s conference room at the state Capitol in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015. One of the bill patrons, Sen. Dave W. Marsden, D-Fairfax, is just behind McAuliffe. (AP Photo/Richmond Times-Dispatch, Bob Brown)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has signed into law a measure that allows the use of derivatives of the marijuana plant for treating severe epilepsy.

The governor signed the bill Thursday at a Capitol ceremony featuring families with epileptic children who have suffered debilitating side effects from taking legal drugs.

It’s the first effective medical marijuana legislation to win approval in Virginia, according to its House sponsor, Del. Dave Albo.

The governor and other elected officials praised the families for being effective advocates for the new law. The law allows possession of cannabidiol oil or THC-A oil with written certification by a doctor that it is needed for treatment of intractable epilepsy.

 

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