Idaho House OKs bill allowing use of marijuana derivative

Idaho’s House has advanced a bill allowing residents to use oil extracted from cannabis plants in staunchly anti-marijuana Idaho as long as the product is prescribed by a licensed practitioner.

If approved, Idahoans would be allowed to legally possess and use the oil for medical purposes for themselves or their minor children. An earlier version of the bill said Idahoans must apply for a cannabidiol registration card to use the oil, but that requirement was dropped.

Cannabidiol, otherwise known as CBD oil, comes from cannabis but contain little or no THC.

Currently, 18 states allow use of “low THC, high cannabidiol (CBD)” products for medical reasons in limited situations or as a legal defense.

Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter vetoed similar legislation in 2015 that would have allowed children with severe forms of epilepsy to use CBD oil.

House members on Wednesday passed the measure on a 59-11 vote. It must now pass the Senate before it can head to the governor’s desk.