I have a lot of family in Idaho, and I can say from first hand experiences while visiting them, Idaho needs marijuana reform as bad as any other state in America. I have literally written articles about how scary of a place Idaho can be to a marijuana consumer, whether it be medical or recreational. There’s a reason why a lot of people have fled Idaho for Oregon and Washington, especially for medical marijuana purposes.
One family in Idaho doesn’t have the option to move (nor should they be required to), and instead is fighting to legalize medical marijuana in Idaho in an attempt to help their son who suffers from epilepsy. Bryce and Holli Bunderson have lived in Idaho their entire lives (Eastern Idaho currently), and plan to lobby the Idaho Legislature to try to urge them to pass a medical marijuana bill in 2015. Per JRN.Com:
With so much uncertainty surrounding the possibility of Scout having another seizure, the family wants to do everything possible to help their son. In January, the Bundersons will ask Idaho lawmakers to consider looking into medical marijuana legislation.
“Hopefully we will never have to use it for our son. Hopefully we will never need it. But other parents do now. Other parents are looking at do we cut our kids head, do we try another medication and see what happens this time or do we try something that is natural and see if that helps,” Holli told Oswalt.
The family has a Facebook page, Scout’s Journey, to document their struggles and to raise awareness of the benefits of medical cannabis. Doctors Oswalt talked to say research on medical marijuana is small, but all of them said there is a benefit. Oswalt will be researching those benefits for stories set to air in the next several weeks.
Admittedly, the Bunderson family is going to face an uphill battle at the Idaho Legislature, but it’s a battle worth fighting nonetheless. Every seizure that their son experiences could be his last, and that’s a feeling that breaks my heart so much as a new father myself. I hope for their son’s sake, and for the sake of all suffering patients in Idaho that medical marijuana could help, that the Idaho Legislature takes a compassionate and sensible approach and passes a bill this session.
