Medical cannabis is officially, finally, legal in Mississippi.
The state’s Republican governor, Tate Reeves, signed legislation on Wednesday that will allow qualifying patients to receive the treatment, ending a long and drawn-out struggle that dates back to the 2020 election, when a huge majority of Mississippi voters passed a ballot initiative.
“The ‘medical marijuana bill’ has consumed an enormous amount of space on the front pages of the legacy media outlets across Mississippi over the last three-plus years,” Reeves said in a statement that he posted on Twitter.
“There is no doubt that there are individuals in our state who could do significantly better if they had access to medically prescribed doses of cannabis. There are also those who really want a recreational marijuana program that could lead to more people smoking and less people working, with all of the societal and family ills that that brings.”
After voters approved the initiative to legalize medical cannabis in 2020, it didn’t take long for the measure to unravel. The state Supreme Court struck it down last year, ruling that the initiative was unconstitutional based on a technicality.
Ever since then, Reeves and lawmakers have been engaged in a back-and-forth surrounding a legislation to replace the one nullified by the court. Despite being opposed to the initiative, Reeves said that he would honor “the will of voters.” But getting a bill on his desk proved to be difficult.
In the fall, Mississippi legislators produced a bill, but Reeves did not call a special session, citing objections with the legislation as it was drawn up.
“I am confident we will have a special session of the Legislature if we get the specifics of a couple of items