House Bill 3924 would require buyers to be at least 21 years old and restrict where certain hemp products could be sold. Some leaders want a total ban.
ROCK HILL, S.C. โ Marijuana is illegal in South Carolina, but the state currently has no regulations on THC products, leaving hemp-derived consumables like drinks and gummies in a legal gray area that lawmakers are now moving to address.
“If that is helping them solve the problem, like getting them out of pain or helping them sleep a little better โ then why not?” pharmacist Nehal Kabrawala, who works at Prime Family Pharmacy in Rock Hill, said.
The pharmacy sells some CBD and THC products that Kabrawala says patients use for pain management. He operates under county and federal regulations, as well as doctor recommendations, because South Carolina has no state requirements for age verification, product testing or packaging of THC items.
The main legislation under consideration, House Bill 3924,ย would require buyers to be at least 21 years old and restrict where certain hemp products could be sold. Some suggest limiting stronger products to liquor stores, while others would like to only allow lower-dose options.
Some Republicans want to go further and ban the products entirely, despite a close vote last week not going in their favor. Regardless, the push is worrying advocates of medical cannabis.
Kabrawala said he is not opposed to regulation but wants to see protections built in for medical users.
“Everything can be misused,” he said. “But if there’s a way for us to track who is buying how much, that would be a better way. We’re doing it with pseudoephedrine. Why not with something like this?”
The South Carolina Senate has passed medical cannabis legislation twice in recent years, but neither bill made it past the House.ย
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