By Kirk Ludden
In 1978, Washington state lawmakers passed legislation known as the “Controlled Substances Therapeutic Research Act” establishing a THC/cannabis research program within the Washington State Board of Pharmacy.
In 1998, voters overwhelmingly approved medical cannabis allowing for compassionate care creating RCW 69.51A.
On April 29, 2011, poor judgment and lack of leadership on the part of then-Governor Christine Gregoire led to the vetoing of regulation sections in E2SSB 5073 for medical cannabis. These sections would likely have given medicinal cannabis the legal protection it needed once I-502 passed.
In 2012, with promises of “I-502 won’t harm patients”
