Just weeks before Utah voters were expected to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes, Gov. Gary Herbert announced a compromise between pot advocates and the powerful Mormon Church, which had fiercely opposed the proposition on the November ballot.



That means no matter what happens at the polls, the state legislature will meet in a special session after the election to discuss getting marijuana to patients — though it will be by way of a stricter framework than other states have used.

For medical marijuana patients, that means they'll soon have access to cannabis products after years of waiting for relief. And for opponents, it means tighter controls to prevent medical use from increasing illicit recreational use. Herbert added he believed both sides of the issue shared a desire to alleviate pain and suffering while also keeping the drug out of the wrong hands.

"Today we have a group of people who've come together to help create a better policy than exists in Proposition 2, which will provide for us to have access to safe cannabis-based treatments and really a framework for true medical marijuana use," he said at a press conference.

Herbert added that he didn't believe the proposition went far enough to prevent unintended consequences or abuse of the system.

"Those concerns are legitimate, and they needed to be addressed," he said.