Governor McCrory signs hemp oil bill
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- In a tender moment, Gov. Pat McCrory nuzzled with the namesake of House Bill 1220 Thursday as he held a ceremony to sign it into law. It's named for a little girl named Haley who's battled seizures since she was nine weeks old.
"Just this morning, we had a seizure at three o'clock in our sleep," said Haley's mother, Sherena Ward. "Had to give her some emergency medications and she sat there and trembled for about an hour."
The Hope 4 Haley and friends bill allows for the use of hemp oil to treat seizures - provided the patient hasn't responded to three or more treatments - and is being treated by a neurologist.
"This bill is about providing care for families and children just like Zora Carlin from Johnston county or Maddie Gorman, who's currently living in Colorado," said McCrory. "I want Maddie and her family to come back to North Carolina. There's no reason for you to live in Colorado because we now know you can get the care that you need right here in North Carolina."
Haley and others children will soon be able to participate in a study of the oil, and others will have access once approved by the FDA.
The oil has virtually no THC, which causes the high associated with marijuana.
Parents, like Haley's, say the oil gives them hope.
"If she can eat again, we can get rid of the feeding pump, the feeding tube, all of the equipment and that would be nice. Haley can go play and get outside with the kids. That's the big thing that she's missing out on," said Sherena. "She needs a childhood and if it works, she'll have a childhood."
