In Sacramento, a bill was recently passed by the state assembly that allowed children to have their CBD medication with them in schools. This bill allows parents to administer CBD medication to their children on the school grounds.
Under Californian state law, children under the legal age have been allowed to have medicinal cannabis products since the 90’s. However, the state law prohibited the medical marijuana from being present on school property or school grounds. Children that required frequent administration of the medicine had to be led off of school property in order for their parents to treat them.
The bill was carried by Senator Jerry Hill who went on to say that youths living with medical disabilities would benefit from this legislation.
The bill states that the medicinal marijuana is prohibited from being vaporized or inhaled. The medicine is strictly allowed only in tincture, oil, pill, topical or any form that is not administered via inhalation. Furthermore, children are required to have a medical marijuana recommendation. The bill is also not mandated, the schools may opt-in to implement the allowance of medicinal marijuana on their grounds but they may also keep the restrictions as they were.
This means that although the state of California no longer prohibits the medicinal CBD on school grounds, schools and districts may still implement the restriction. The Rincon Valley Union School District is attempting to keep these restrictions in place. Brooke Adams, a five-year-old student at the school, is administered CBD oil to assist in treating her severe form of epilepsy. Brooke suffers from Dravet Syndrome, a rare form of epilepsy that results in severe epileptic fits. If the seizures are not treated, then they can last up to 30 minutes.
Brooke’s parents say that since taking the cannabis medication, the fits have decreased in both severity as well as duration, however, the school said that Brooke would not be allowed to take the medication on school grounds. This is because cannabis is not permitted on the school’s property.
However, judge Charles Marson has recently ruled in Brooke’s favor, legally giving her parents the power to keep Brooke both fit-free and in school.
Brooke’s parents say that they noticed significant positive changes since Brooke was first recommended CBD medication. Brooke’s father, Jonathan, says that they tried to use a variety of different anti-seizure medications however none showed signs of effectiveness. Brooke was diagnosed with Dravet syndrome in her first year of life- the most common time for Dravet diagnosis – and her parents obtained a medical marijuana card when she was one. The improvements were immediate and her parents have been administering cannabis medicine to Brooke ever since.
Brooke receives CBD oil on a daily basis. The CBD Medication is rubbed on her gums where it is absorbed into her system. For emergency treatment, she carries THC oil. According to her parents, when Brooke takes the THC medicine, she falls asleep and when she wakes she is fine.
What is Dravet Syndrome?
Dravet Syndrome is a genetic and rare form of epilepsy that is usually diagnosed within the first year. Approximately only one in every 15,700 children are affected by the disease. Studies have found that over 80% of those diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome have a mutation in the SCN1A gene.
• Severe seizures lasting longer than 30 minutes
• Speech and language development problems
• Difficulties with sleep
• Chronic infections
Despite Dravet Syndrome being a severe and potentially damaging condition for young children, there is no known cure and very little effective treatments. The current treatments focus on reducing seizures, reducing seizure severity, seizure length and reducing the risk of infections.
In June 2018, Epidolex, an oral CBD medication, was approved by the FDA. This CBD Medication was developed for the treatment of epileptic syndromes Dravets and Lennox-Gastaut for patients older than two years.
However, cannabis (whether medicinal or recreational) is prohibited from being within one thousand feet of any school. This legislation was put in place to protect children however it prohibits children who rely on this medication to have it when necessary. This is why a recent bill was introduced, one that could allow children who rely on medicinal cannabis to bring it onto school grounds.
The recent ruling allowing Brooke Adams to bring her medicinal marijuana with her into school was a relief for her parents. Brooke’s mother, in a statement released by The Press-Democrat, said that the ruling in Brooke’s favor means that they do not have to fight the battle anymore. She goes on to say that Brooke can attend the school like a normal child and they don’t have to keep fighting for Brooke to get the treatment when and where she needs it.
The Adams family lawyer, Joe Rogoway, says that the victory in Brooke’s favor will hopefully assist future students to have access to the medicine when they need it.
The district attorneys have yet to decide whether or not they will make an appeal.
In a statement from the school, the school district is pleased to be able to help Brooke with the new guidance from the court.
So far, 2018 has been a landmark year for marijuana. So far, twenty states have legalized medicinal use of marijuana and ten states have legalized recreational marijuana.
Author Bio:
Camilla Morgan is a blogger by profession with 5 years of experience. She is associated with CBD Safe and selling pure Cannabidiol & Best CBD Hemp oil products in the USA. She is an admirer of sharing his innovative ideas with others on the Wellness for Mind and Body.
