TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida House Appropriations Committee passed legislation Monday that would cap the THC content of smokable medical marijuana at 10 percent, a restriction critics warn would prompt patients to turn to the black market for full-potency cannabis.

The panel's approval of the Republican-crafted proposal came over the objection of dozens of patients who spoke before the vote, accusing GOP lawmakers of ignoring the will of the voters who approved medical marijuana legalization in 2016.

"I felt like they completely ignored us," said Juan Perez, a medical marijuana patient from Sanford who accused Republicans of using inaccurate information to promote the cap.

"I thought that when their study of the lancet was blown up with all the arbitrary findings and all the weirdness, I thought that would make a difference. It meant nothing."

The House's medical marijuana policy chief, Rep. Ray Rodrigues (R-Estero), told the committee a 10 percent cap on THC -- the ingredient responsible for marijuana's 'high' -- is critical to preventing the onset of conditions like schizophrenia.

Having initially been a skeptic of the medical value of low-potency marijuana, he conceded that it can, in fact, help patients suffering from certain ailments.

"I've studied the science, and I've been led to believe that, absolutely, there is a benefit from that," he said.

Though he added, "I have not seen the science that shows daily use of high-potency cannabis is medically beneficial."

The public testimony before Tuesday's vote was particularly heated, with one speaker accusing the panel's Republicans of "murder" for depriving opioid addicts of an alternative drug.

At one point, the panel's chairman ordered the lectern microphone turned off, and deputies of the House sergeant-at-arms prepared to forcibly remove speakers who didn't comply with instructions to stand down.

While the proposal makes its way through the lower chamber, some eyes are already turning to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who upon taking office all but ordered the legislature to overturn the medical marijuana smoking ban House Republicans had championed just two years ago.

Should the 10 percent cap reach the governor's desk, it remains an open question if he'd sign it.