A bill concerning expansion of medical marijuana use has passed the Iowa Legislature.

District 24 Senator Jerry Behn of Boone says last week the Senate passed House File 2589 for expanded medical marijuana use by a 32-17 vote. He voted in favor of the legislation that allows patients with a chronic illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, serious autism with aggressive or injurious behavior or a terminal illness to receive medical marijuana with up to 4.5 grams of THC within a 90-day period. The bill also has certain exceptions to the outlined time frame, such as those with a terminal illness that have a life expectancy of less than one year.

Behn notes that he previously voted against this bill, due to the recommendations brought to lawmakers were more than what an independent medical board had recommended. Behn points out this bill aligns itself with what the medical board wanted, and so he voted for it. However, Behn explains he continues to be torn on the matter because marijuana is still classified as a schedule I drug by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and he wants the drug to move to a schedule II.

“If it were a schedule II drug then we would be allowed to have United States testing of it, run it through a double-blind study, test it for efficacy, see how will it works; test it for safety, test it up against a Placebo, (and) do all the things with it that we normally do with drugs. So that we can actually get some bonafide scientific information so we don’t have to rely on international studies, as opposed to United States studies.”

Behn believes decisions like this should not be up to the Legislature but it should be determined by the medical community. The bill now awaits the governor’s signature to become law.