It’s time for the Alabama legislature to move a medical marijuana bill out of committee in 2010

Last update: April 2, 2010

In 2009, the Drug Policy Alliance and Alabamians for Compassionate Care continued the effort to advance marijuana legislation with the help of compassionate legislators.

A new bill, H.B. 434, which was introduced by Representative Patricia Todd (D-Birmingham), would have authorized the medical use of marijuana for certain qualifying patients who have been diagnosed by a physician as having a debilitating medical condition. Unfortunately, the bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee and it remained there until the session adjourned in May. Rep. Todd introduced a new bill on March 2, 2010, H.B. 642.

H.B. 642 will have a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, April 7. The committee chair is Rep. Marcel Black (D-Colbert).

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.

Thank you for supporting the Marijuana Policy Project and all of our allies. If you are a patient battling a serious illness, the loved one of a seriously ill patient or late patient, or a medical professional who supports this legislation, please contact MPP at state@mpp.org. Please include your address or nine-digit ZIP code so we can determine who your state legislators are.subscribe to MPP's free legislative alert service today if you haven't done so already. 

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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 Alabamas marijuana penalties and enforcement by reading this report by Jon Gettman, PhD.