U.S, lawmaker calls for legalizing medical marijuana

Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) called for the federal legalization of therapeutic hemp and cannabidol at a federal level at a Club Newsmaker event April 22.

Perry said this would provide access to the drug, which he said could reduce the duration and length of seizures in children and adults with epilepsy and other related disorders.

He said his proposed bill “in no way federally legalizes or allows for the recreational use of marijuana.”

His bill, Charlotte’s Web Medical Hemp Act, is named after Charlotte Figi, a young girl who suffers from a severe form of epilepsy. Her mother, Paige Figi, is the founder and executive director of the Coalition for Access Now, a nonprofit organization dedicated to allowing the use of marijuana to help patients with chronic health issues.

“There are 14 states that have passed this bill, and it is time for the federal government to step in so that the bills align,” Figi said.

Figi said parents were forced to become “medical refugees” as they move to states that have already legalized medical marijuana.

“We are not asking for much to be accomplished actually, just for the government to step out of the way, and fix the mistake that was made when this plant went through prohibition, allowing hemp and cannabidol to be lumped in with the recreational street drug argument,” Figi said.