Parents appeal for Pa. legalization of medical pot

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania legislative panel received a wide range of testimony at a two-and-a-half-hour hearing, most of it positive, for a bill to legalize marijuana for medical purposes.

Parents of children who suffer from seizures made emotional appeals to the Senate Law and Justice Committee on Tuesday to allow doctors to prescribe marijuana extracts. They said government-approved drugs not only failed to stop the seizures but cause severe and sometimes violent side effects.

Josh Stanley, who co-founded a Colorado nonprofit that's exploring the medical potential of marijuana, told the panel that compounds in the plant could treat an array of diseases including cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and diabetes.

But the Pennsylvania Medical Society withheld its support, saying more study is necessary.

Gov. Tom Corbett opposes the measure.

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