COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Senate has once again given key approval to a medical marijuana bill, but it's unclear what it's fate will be once it gets to the House.
Senators okayed the bill on a 26-17 vote Tuesday afternoon after hours of debate. The bill must still be voted on a third reading Wednesday, but third reasons are usually a formality.
The bill, dubbed the Compassionate Care Act, would allow the sale of medical cannabis under strict guidelines. The cannabis would only be used for therapeutic reasons and would have to be under the direction of a physician. This would include some oral medication as well as ointments and creams. However, the measure would not allow for smoking of marijuana.
A similar measure passed the Senate in 2022 but was defeated in the House. That meant the legislative process had to restart, with a refiling of the bill in this year's session.
State Senator Tom Davis of Beaufort, the bill's sponsor, said last week this bill has adjustments that he feels should help it pass the House, including tightening the restrictions on who could dispense the drug.
"This is anything but rolling the dice. It is making the physician the gatekeeper," Davis said during debate last week. "No patient can access cannabis unless that physician has a thorough inpatient diagnosis, consideration of all therapies, consideration of that patient's history and that physician makes a determination that it is safe."
The Senate spent three days debating the measure before Tuesday's vote.
Nationwide, 37 other states have passes measures that allow some use of medical cannabis.