Kansas Senate Bill 9: Cannabis Compassionate Care Act

I have adapted the following post from a facebook post Ryan made this morning, so as to share with all of our friends who are not on facebook:


The Kansas Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare meets today to hear about medical marijuana in Kansas--specifically, Senator Haley's Senate Bill 9, the Kansas Compassion and Care Act. The hearing wasn't scheduled until the end of last week, and by the time we caught wind of it, it was too late for one of us to make arrangements to attend. We were, however, able to submit written testimony and Ryan's parents David and Donna will be there to represent us. Donna has been given the opportunity to speak for 2-3 minutes. The hearing is scheduled to take place at 1:15 this afternoon.

We hope that the committee hears Donna and the other speakers and reads each of the testimonies with open hearts and minds. We hope that they educate themselves on the issue as opposed to allowing past stigma to cloud their judgement. We hope laws are changed to allow some of the most vulnerable in our state another treatment option. We hope to be allowed back into the state of Kansas with Otis and the oil that has given him a better quality of life than he has ever had before.

We believe it will happen...but sooner rather than later would be great. Hopefully for the next hearing we'll have more advance notice so we can ALL go and show them how we feel.

If you would like to reach out to members of this committee to voice your support for Senate Bill 9, please feel free to contact the members via phone or email...or go in for a visit. Here is the Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare:

http://www.kslegislature.org/li_2014/b2013_14/committees/ctte_s_phw_1/

Mary Pilcher-Cook may be a good place to start if you'd like to contact anyone, as she has been an opponent of the bill and is the Chair of the committee.

Mary Pilcher-Cook
Capitol Office
Room: 441-E
Seat: 36
Phone: 785-296-7362
Email:Mary.PilcherCook@senate.ks.gov

Home Information
13910 West 58th Place
Shawnee, KS 66216
Phone: 913-396-9306
Email:mary@pilchercook.com

Contact information for all other members of the committee can be found by clicking on each of their names (on the right-hand side of the page) from the Committee link above.

Hugs and high fives to all of you, and thank you again and again and again for all of your love and support.

Kathy, Ryan & Otis