The state could soon allow residents dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder to use medical marijuana.
As The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Jake Neher reports, a state board Thursday approved adding PTSD to the state’s medical marijuana program.
Dakota Serna served in the Marines during the Iraq War. He says memories of seeing friends and children killed left him suicidal after he came home. Serna says the only thing that has helped him get his life back on track is using marijuana.
But that puts him on the wrong side of the law as it’s currently written.
“Somebody on paper can say that I’m a criminal,” he says. “Somebody can come to my house and try to put me in handcuffs. But I’m not a criminal.”
The state board agreed people like Serna should be able to use marijuana to treat their PTSD. But it also voted against adding insomnia and bipolar disorder to the list of acceptable conditions under the medical marijuana law.
The board’s recommendations now go to Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Director Steve Arwood for final approval.