Two House committee in Hawaii have unanimously passed a bill to change the way the state refers to “medical marijuana”.
Senate Bill 786 has been passed by both the House Health Committee and the House Judiciary Committee, both unanimously. The measure, filed by Senator Mike Gabbard (D), has already been passed by the Senate with a 25 to 0 vote. It will soon be up for a vote in the full House of Representatives.
Senate Bill 786 would amend “Hawaii Revised Statutes and Hawaii Administrative Rules to substitute references to “medical marijuana” and like terms with “medical cannabis” and like terms”, and “Requires the department of health to make all conforming revisions to documents, letterhead, websites, and other necessary items by December 31, 2019.”
The measure states this change to be necessary because “”Marijuana” has no scientific basis but carries prejudicial implications rooted in racial stereotypes from the early twentieth century era when cannabis use was first criminalized in the United States.” The term “cannabis”, however, “carries no such negative connotations and is a more accurate and appropriate term to describe a plant that has been legalized for medicinal use in Hawaii, twenty-seven other states, the District of Columbia, and the United States territories of Guam and Puerto Rico.”
The full text of the one-page bill can be found by clicking here.
About Anthony Martinelli
Anthony, co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of TheJointBlog, has worked closely with numerous elected officials who support cannabis law reform, including as the former Campaign Manager for Washington State Representative Dave Upthegrove. He has also been published by multiple media outlets, including the Seattle Times. He can be reached at TheJointBlog@nullTheJointBlog.com.