New York (CNN Business) US states are increasingly legalizing marijuana, but the drug still isn't mainstream enough to convince CBS to let a cannabis company run a Super Bowl ad in 2019.

Acreage Holdings, a US-based cannabis firm that made a splash last year when it added former House Speaker John Boehner to its board , told CNN Business that CBS rejected its proposed 30-second commercial.

George Allen, president of Acreage Holdings, said the ad focused on how medical marijuana has helped people cope with pain, including a child with Dravet's syndrome that suffered from epileptic seizures.

The ad does not promote Acreage products, which makes it different from other controversial Super Bowl ads that have been turned down by networks in the past. For example, a spot from GoDaddy was once denied because it was considered too sexually suggestive.

By going public with the news of a rejected ad, Acreage is following the lead of other companies that have had their ads turned down. The company said it plans to publish a 60-second version of the spot on its website so people can see what the fuss was all about.

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