Click here to send a message in support of relief for patients and veterans.

Earlier today, lawmakers reconvened in Columbia to continue their 2019-2020 session. Both the House and Senate are picking up the medical cannabis discussion where they left off. We need your help to make sure the legislature finally gives patients the relief they deserve.

Send your lawmakers a message in support of these bills right now. Our automated system makes it quick and easy to write your lawmakers. You can send a pre-drafted letter, make edits to share your story, or compose your own letter.

Here is a quick summary of where things stand, next steps, and how supporters can help.

Twin bills were introduced last year — one in the House and one in the Senate. Sen. Tom Davis (R) is the lead sponsor behind the Senate bill, S. 366, which was assigned to the Senate Medical Affairs Committee. In 2019, a Senate subcommittee held hearings and advanced the bill with some amendments. The full committee began work on the bill last Spring and is expected to take the bill up again in the coming weeks.

Over on the House side, Rep. Peter McCoy (R) sponsors the bill, H. 3660, which has been posted for a Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs Committee (“3M”) subcommittee hearing next Tuesday.

We want pressure to continue during the session, so please stay tuned. Right now, you can take a moment to send a message to your Senator and House member in support. Help us ensure 2020 will be the year we finally see a law pass. Support S. 366 and H. 3660 today!

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MPP and Clergy for a New Drug Policy are reaching out to clergy – you can help

As South Carolina considers adopting a medical cannabis program, a recent poll shows how supportive South Carolinians continue to be. This support must certainly include members of the faith community.

We are eager to identify individual clergy we might contact and work with on this important issue. If you are a member of the clergy or you know someone who is and who supports this effort, please let us know. Clergy may also sign our online statement of support.

Thirty-three states have already approved cannabis as medicine. 2019 will likely be a pivotal year in the debate in South Carolina. Sen. Tom Davis and Rep. Peter McCoy have reintroduced bills this year that would establish a medical cannabis program for seriously ill patients in South Carolina.

Clergy have spoken out for medical cannabis in other states and are raising their voices in South Carolina as well. Clergy for a New Drug Policy, our ally around the U.S, has already begun meeting with individual clergy here. For a recent post on medical cannabis as an alternative to opioids, click here.

Those who choose the safer approach should not be treated like criminals, particularly when they are under the care of a physician.

Please contact us if you are a supportive member of the clergy or know someone who is. Together, we can lay the foundation for a compassionate and regulated program for many of our state's most vulnerable population.

Thank you for your help.

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If you're a South Carolina resident, click here to send a message to your lawmakers in support of a medical cannabis program.

Sen. Tom Davis introduced a new bill today that would establish a medical cannabis program for seriously ill patients in South Carolina. The text of Senate bill 366 is available here. Sen. Davis' office sent out a summary of the bill, and we have our own as well. Rep. Peter McCoy is expected to file his own version in the House soon.

You lawmakers need to hear from you. Click here to forward a message asking for support.

Sen. Davis and Rep. McCoy sponsored medical cannabis bills in 2018, and in many respects this year's effort will pick up where last year's left off. Measures in both chambers passed out of committee last year, but time ran out before floor votes could be taken. Given the groundwork laid since then, we hope to see a bill pass and be presented to the governor for his signature in 2019.

At the same time, there are signs of increasing support among members of the GOP. Members of the Charleston County GOP voted yesterday in support of a resolution asking the state legislature to adopt a medical cannabis measure for patients in South Carolina. Based on recent polling, 63% of Republicans in the state support such a program.

2019 could be the year patients finally get a program they deserve! Make sure your lawmakers hear from you, and please forward this message to friends, family, and supporters in South Carolina.

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Lawmakers reconvening for 2019 legislative session. If you live in South Carolina, click here to voice your support for medical cannabis in South Carolina!

Lawmakers are reconvening this week in Columbia as the 2019 legislative session kicks off. Two bills have already been introduced that would establish a medical cannabis program, with more on the way. This could be a big year for patients seeking access to medical cannabis in the Palmetto State.

Make sure lawmakers hear from you in support of a medical cannabis program in South Carolina.

The two bills that have already been introduced, one by Rep. Rosalyn Henderson-Myers and another by Rep. J. Todd Rutherford, would both create programs that are similar in many ways to the medical cannabis laws in 32 other states and Washington, D.C. In addition, Sen. Tom Davis and Rep. Peter McCoy, who sponsored legislation last year, are also expected to introduce their own legislation measures shortly. Similar bills passed out of the House and Senate committees last year, but didn't receive a floor vote before adjournment.

Make sure your lawmakers heard about a poll recently published by Benchmark Research, which found that 72% of South Carolinians, including 63% of Republicans, support providing access to medical cannabis for patients. Support is strong, and it's time to get it done.

Please forward this message to friends, family, and supporters in South Carolina.

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