Signatures being collected to put medical marijuana on Nebraska ballot

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Medical marijuana organizers in Nebraska believe the third time will be the charm.

Crista Eggers of Gretna leads Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana for one major reason: her son, Colton, suffers from epileptic seizures.

She believes he, along with other Nebraska families, should have treatment options that don’t just consist of buckets of pharmaceuticals.

Colton currently takes 20 different pills.

“His health continues to be a challenge,” Crista said. “He still experiences quite a few seizures. We made some med changes recently and we’ve seen a little benefit, but he’s still falling in the category of patients who are medically resistant to any type of treatment.”

Organizers collected enough signatures the first time, during the COVID pandemic, but the Nebraska Supreme Court said the ballot measure contained too many subjects.

The second time, organizers fell short in terms of fundraising and signatures.

This time, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana believe the results will be different.

“Last time, we realized we could actually say, ‘Hey, Nebraska, if you support this, come out and sign,’” Eggers said. “We don’t have signature collectors everywhere. Come and find us. The main thing is let’s file language early, let’s have a year to collect signatures. No matter what, we have time on our side.”

July 2024 is the deadline for organizers to collect enough signatures to put the issue on next November’s ballot and, in their view, finally let the people of Nebraska decide.

6 News reached out to Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen for comment, to which he replied, “Legalization of marijuana poses demonstrated harms to our children. Access to medical should only happen if it has undergone the FDA-approved process.”

For information on where and when the petition will be available to sign, click here.

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