A lot has changed over the course of the last few years in regards to marijuana use in the U.S. The conversation has been making its way from state to state, particularly the conversation about medical marijuana. Twenty-three states, plus the District of Columbia, have legalized the use of medical marijuana, which leaves 27 states to begin weighing the pros and cons of making medical marijuana accessible. Of those 27 states, most have proposed legalizing medical marijuana. Interestingly, 10 of these states are located in the American South – not typically known for it’s progressive initiatives.
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. These aren’t the states you’d expect to hear considering cannabis legislation, but they are! And the conversation is certainly getting more serious.
For example, only 16 states have legalized cannabidiol oil (CBD). And of those states, 10 are located in the South. This goes to show that even if states haven’t legalized medical marijuana, the move to utilize marijuana and it’s chemical properties for medicinal purposes pushes the legitimacy of legalizing medical cannabis forward.
Some of the legislation that was proposed in 2015 failed to pass. However, the fact of the matter is, the conversation of legalizing medical marijuana is shifting…and it’s shifting southward.
