Classroom setting. Photo by Dids from Pexels.

Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom – a leading advocate of Proposition 64 – the recreational pot legalization initiative, signed a bill that allows parents in some California districts to bring medical cannabis to their child at K-12 school campuses.

The bill was initiated by Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo). Hill said his bill was crucial for aiding hundreds of students “for whom medicinal cannabis is the only medication that works – so they can take their dose at school and then get on with their studies, without being removed from campus and without disrupting their educational experience or that of their classmates.”

The new law, dubbed JoJo’s Act in reference to a San Francisco Bay Area teenager with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome – a severe form of epilepsy, will take effect on January 1, 2020.

Parents must have a doctor’s endorsement to bring cannabis products on campus. The medical cannabis must be administered to students by parents if their school board has accepted a policy providing access. The cannabis product cannot be in smoking or vaping form. Methods such as cannabis oils, creams, and pills are acceptable.

California pursues eight other states, including Washington and Florida, in allowing medical cannabis use in K-12 schools.

For more on this story, read Medical Marijuana OK at K-12 Schools in California After Gov. Newsom Signs New Law on Los Angeles Times.