Currently, Medical Marijuana is NOT AVAILABLE
BUT
We here at GreenWay have put together current information on the status of medical marijuana in North Carolina, as well as other medical options available to you until it is.
Legislation
Read to learn what the current status of medical marijuana is in North Carolina and what others are trying to do.
CBD
Discover what CBD is and how it could be an alternative for you until medical marijuana is available.
Traveling
There are out-of-state options for those who desperately need medical marijuana. Find out if they are right for you.
Research
Read research articles on medical marijuana for different conditions and how it affects your body.
Legislation
Pending Legislation
On February 11, 2015, House Bill No. 78 was filed with the State General Assembly to enact the North Carolina Medical Cannabis Act. The bill passed First Reading and was referred to the Committee on Judiciary on February 16, 2015 which rejected it on March 25, 2015. Two years ago, a similar bill was directed to the House Rules Committee, where Republican leaders allowed four people to speak before cutting off discussion and killing the bill.
House Bill No. 317 which legalizes marijuana use for terminally ill patients in hospice care is pending with the State general Assembly and has been referred to the Judiciary Committee. Supporters of medical marijuana are now lobbying for the approval of the proposal.
Advocate Group
There are a number of pro-marijuana advocate groups in Noth Carolina which include the North Carolina Cannabis Patients Network (NCCPN) and the NC Medical Cannabis.
Current Legislation
North Carolina has a medical marijuana law but it is limited to CBD and only for treatment of Intractable Epilepsy. Qualifying patients are only allowed to possess cannabis extracts containing more than 10% CBD and no more than 0.3% THC. Home cultivation, dispensaries, and caregivers are not allowed.
The State law on marijuana provides that possession of half an ounce or less is punishable by up to 30 days in jail. A penalty of 1-120 days in jail, with possibility of community service or probation in lieu of jail is imposed on marijuana possession greater than half an ounce.
Possession greater than 1.5 ounces results in an increase in penalties of 8 to 13 months in jail. The state allows conditional release, alternative, or diversion sentencing for people facing their first prosecutions.
Med Card Waiting List
Although medical marijuana is not available for you yet, hopefully it will be soon. Until then, we encourage you to sign up for our medical marijuana card waiting list.
Once medical marijuana is available in North Carolina, we will contact you and help you with the rest of the process.
Cannabidiol (CBD)
Despite the fact that North Carolina has not legalized medical marijuana, you can still have access to some of the most important therapeutic benefits it has to offer. There is a compound found in marijuana called CBD, which is also found in hemp; a plant from the same family as marijuana and similar in nature. CBD is debatably the most valuable compound sourced from these two plants and medical research has shown it to offer symptom relief for a variety of ailments, including pain, muscle spasms, and anxiety. When CBD is extracted from the hemp plant, it is legal in all 50 states because it is generally considered safe and cannot get you high.
Cannabidiol from Medical Marijuana – Illegal
In places where medical marijuana is regulated, medical marijuana plants are grown in high CBD with varying amounts of THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. The CBD is extracted from the plants and sold to licensed dispensaries and prescribed by doctors for certain conditions.
CBD from medical marijuana is NOT legal in states where medical marijuana is not regulated, unless stated otherwise.
Cannabidiol from Industrial Hemp – Legal
CBD extracted from industrial hemp has practically no THC in it. Therefore, it is not possible to get a “high” from CBD extracted from industrial hemp plants. The FDA views CBD extracted from industrial hemp as a “dietary supplement” instead of a medication. Since CBD from industrial hemp is viewed as a dietary supplement, you do not need a prescription to get it.
CBD from industrial hemp plants IS legal in all states because the FDA views it as a “dietary supplement”.
While it is unfortunate that North Carolina has yet to legalize medical marijuana, we are lucky that there are other ways to access the medicinal properties it has to offer. CBD products are available in many different forms including: vaporizers, tinctures, lotions, capsules, and other edible products.
Traveling
Recreational Marijuana
With marijuana for recreational use being legal in five states, you also have the option to travel there. Currently, you can travel to Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Washington DC, and Alaska. If you are interested in an international destination, Jamaica has also just legalized medical marijuana as well.
Medical Marijuana Research
Medical Marijuana Research by Condition
- Cancer: Medical Marijuana’s Many Benefits
- Combating AIDS Wasting Syndrome with Marijuana
- Malnutrition and the Role of Medical Marijuana
- Marijuana & AIDS: A Discovery Toward Healing
- Medical Cannabis for Cancer & Chemotherapy Symptoms
- Medical Cannabis for Treating Crohn’s Disease
- Medical Cannabis for Treating Multiple Sclerosis
- Medical Marijuana For Migraine Headache Relief
- Medical Marijuana For Pain Relief
- Medical Marijuana For Parkinsons & Huntingtons
- Medical Marijuana Research on Epilepsy
- Medical Marijuana Research on Seizures
- Medical Marijuana Research: Alzheimer’s Disease
- Medical Marijuana Research: Glaucoma
- Medical Marijuana Research: PTSD
- Multiple Sclerosis & the Role of Medical Marijuana
- Nausea and Medical Marijuana
- PTSD and Medical Marijuana
THC vs CBD
Here’s the deal with marijuana, in the most basic concept, there are two main ingredients inside the plant.
THC (tetra-hydro-canna-bin-ol, don’t worry, you will never have to say this word out loud) is a chemical that you may have heard of because it makes you “high”. Aside from the euphoria it produces, it actually provides relief to a number of conditions and symptoms like nausea or chronic pain.
The other thing in marijuana is called CBD (Canna-bi-di-ol). This ingredient also has many medicinal properties but will absolutely NOT get you “high”. The reason you may not have heard of CBD is because marijuana is mostly known for getting people “high” on purpose and thus the majority of plants were bred to have greater amounts of THC than CBD. Since the use of marijuana as a medicine has become more mainstream, CBD is much more readily available.
Both THC and CBD relieve Inflammation, Nausea, Muscle spasms, and Pain as well as reducing seizures. Separately, each chemical can accomplish many of the same medicinal benefits, combined together their properties can be greatly increased.
Now, let's see how these two differ.
THC
Use will cause a "high"
Illegal without a medical card
Use discouraged in most workplaces
Will show up on most drug tests
Can cause Anxiety
Easy to find in most marijuana
------------------------------
Stimulates appetite
CBD
Causes NO "high" whatsoever
Legal everywhere
Safe for use at work
Will NOT show up on a drug test
Reduces Anxiety
Harder to find, requires specific marijuana or hemp
------------------------------
Sleep aid
Reduces the "high" caused by THC
HEMP = CBD (kind of)
One more small basic lesson, you have undoubtedly heard of a plant called hemp. What you may not know is that it is practically the same as marijuana except for the fact that it does not produce THC. What it DOES produce is a LOT of CBD.
Because of the lack of THC in hemp, there are no legal restrictions with its use. This means that you can get large amounts of CBD without the need for a medical card, or worrying about going to jail.
Why are you telling me all of this?
Most people simply do not know about CBD. It might be important to you if you are someone interested in the relieving properties of marijuana but are not interested in getting "high". You could also be someone who wants instant relief without having to wait for the entire medical card process to complete.
If you are one of these types of people then luckily for you, we offer CBD-only products that you can purchase RIGHT NOW.