Delaware Senate Approves Amended Medical Marijuana Expansion Bill

An original version of a bill to expand Delaware’s medical marijuana program was rejected. After changes were made, an amended version to include PTSD as a qualifying condition was approved by the Senate. The reason for its initial rejection was that it was too broad.

State health officials hadn’t approved the original legislation either, according to Delaware Public Media. The compromise came with a little help from Senate Majority Leader Margaret Rose Henry. The expansion was to include PTSD, OCD and anxiety disorders.

She said, “We’ve also met with the Medical Society representative and we’ve met with the state and we’ve come to an agreement. We will not at all address anxiety.”

The bill was amended to list only PTSD. OCD and anxiety were dismissed from the amended version. Another change allows family doctors to provide PTSD diagnoses rather than a just a psychiatrist.

Veterans claimed that visiting a psychiatrist is too expensive and there weren’t enough available to even make an appointment. With unanimous approval of the amended bill, it is now in the hands of the Delaware House.