The tale was enough to get the panel to advance legislation that would legalize the use of medical marijuana in Illinois.

Describing her condition, the 46-year-old Joliet woman testified at a House committee that she illegally uses marijuana to relieve the constant pain she suffers from neurofibromatosis and from a surgery that fused her spine incorrectly.

SPRINGFIELD---Marijuana user Lucie MacFarlane said she munched a ginger snap cannabis cookie before talking to lawmakers at the Capitol today.

The bill passed the Democratic-controlled House Human Services Committee on a 4-3 party-line vote. It's the first time such legislation has cleared a House panel. It now goes to the full House for consideration, so it's far from becoming law.

Rep. Lou Lang (D-Skokie), who sponsored the legislation, said he wants to create a three-year test program allowing anyone with a “debilitating medical condition” to have seven dried cannabis plants and two ounces of dried usable cannabis to relieve the pain and nausea associated with conditions like cancer, HIV or Crohn’s disease.

The bill would allow the Department of Public Health to give registry identification cards to people who have received recommendation for cannabis use from a doctor, Lang said.

If it becomes law, the bill would make Illinois the 14th state to allow the medical use of cannabis, Lang said. A similar bill is pending in the Senate.

David Jocson, statewide drug enforcement coordinator with the Illinois State Police, opposed the bill because he said marijuana is not an FDA-approved medication and because allowing people using cannabis for medicinal purposes would make it easier for others to obtain.