Alabama Legislature adjoirns; medical marijuana bill introduced and then left in committee

In 2011, Alabamians for Compassionate Care and the Drug Policy Alliance continued their tireless efforts to advance marijuana legislation in Alabama, with the help of compassionate legislators. On March 31, Rep. Patricia Todd (D-Birmingham) introduced H.B. 386, comprehensive legislation that would authorize the medical use of marijuana for certain qualifying patients who have been diagnosed by a physician as having a debilitating medical condition. The bill would allow qualifying patients to possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana and cultivate six mature plants and six immature plants, and would also provide for compassion centers. Unfortunately, the legislature adjourned on June 9, and the bill did not move out of committee.

Please email your state legislators to let them know you support legislation that protects Alabama’s seriously ill. The more legislators hear from people like you, the more likely they are to pass effective medical marijuana laws. It only takes a few minutes, but can have an enormous effect.

Rep. Todd made Alabama history when she successfully led H.B. 642, "The Michael Phillips Compassionate Care Act of Alabama," out of the House Judiciary Committee on April 7, 2010, the first time that medical marijuana legislation ever passed committee in Alabama. The bill went to the House floor, but unfortunately, the legislature adjourned on April 22, 2010, without the bill receiving a vote.

Alabamians strongly support protecting the seriously ill from arrest. A 2004 poll by the Mobile Register and the University of South Alabama found that 75 percent of respondents supported legalizing marijuana for medical use under a doctor's supervision.

Are you a patient?

If you are supportive and are a patient with a serious medical condition who might benefit from medical marijuana, a loved one of such a patient, a medical professional, a member of law enforcement or the clergy, or a lawyer or PhD who might be interested in speaking out, please email nmamber@mpp.org to see how you can be of special help. Be sure to include your address and nine-digit ZIP code so we can determine who your legislators are.  

Learn about Alabama's marijuana laws

Alabama has some of the harshest marijuana penalties in the country. Possession of even a single joint is punishable by up to a year of incarceration. You can learn more about Alabama’s marijuana penalties and enforcement by reading this report by Jon Gettman, PhD.

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