MADISON — Tribal leaders pushed Tuesday for lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin, saying patients with conditions like chronic pain and PTSD deserve access to cannabis as a treatment option.
“We’ve been sort of stuck in the middle of Prohibition Island here between these three other states surrounding us,” said Rob Pero, who founded Canndigenous, a Native American hemp company in Cambridge. “Our citizens are having to make a choice of whether to really commit a crime to get their medicine and bring it back to the state.”
Pero and others launched the advocacy campaign Wisconsin Wellness to spread awareness about the medicinal uses of cannabis.
Watch: Tribal leaders call for legalized medical marijuana in Wisconsin
Wisconsin is one of just 12 states where medical marijuana remains illegal; however, hemp-derived cannabinoids like Delta-8 THC are legal in Wisconsin under the federal 2018 Farm Bill.
Democrats in Wisconsin have repeatedly pushed to legalize recreational marijuana, but they’ve been blocked by Republicans who control the state Legislature.
Last year, Republicans in the state Assembly backed a restrictive bill to create state-run medical marijuana dispensaries, but that bill died because Senate Republicans objected to a state agency operating dispensaries.
“It’s time that we end that prohibition, we allow this to be a choice for those who need this medicinal cannabis for their lives,” said Kristin White Eagle, a legislator for the Ho-Chunk Nation.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, the Republican leaders of both chambers of the Legislature, did not immediately respond Tuesday to an email asking whether they expect the Legislature to pass some form of medical marijuana when lawmakers return to session next year.
