NFL HOF Linebacker Jack Ham advocates for cannabis in Pennsylvania and will serve as a spokesperson and consultant for AGRiMED, which has plans to grow and provide cannabis for patients who meet a qualifying medical condition for the therapeutic use of marijuana. This partnership plans to advocate for medical marijuana in Pennsylvania by connecting patients with the medicine they need. They also hope to help create careers for the Pennsylvania communities.
According to the AGRIMED news article, Ham said that this wasn’t about getting high, “This is about medicine and giving patients an alternative option to manage pain and other medical complications that arise from cancer treatment, and other problems.”
You can read the full press release from AGRIMED here.
The Weed Blog has done a fair amount of coverage on the NFL and various retired players, such as Eugene Monroe, who have advocated for medical cannabis law reform and safe access for retired athletes. But, until the NFL makes changes to it’s current policies and rules, NFL players are limited to using pharmaceuticals to manage their pain.
According to The Tribune Democrat
Ham played football at Bishop McCort and Penn State before joining the Steelers in 1971. He was a four-time Super Bowl champion and eight-time Pro Bowler during his Hall of Fame career. Although he only had a few injuries during his career – except for a foot injury that prevented him from playing in Super Bowl XIV – he said he wished there had been legal alternatives to painkillers.
“I didn’t have any alternatives to consider during that period of time,” he said in a release.
“The medication was almost as bad as the initial surgery on my foot. It didn’t bring me the relief I really wanted. I can see myself down the road here – yes, without question – taking medical marijuana for any kind of pain situation I have as I go further in life.”
In April 2016, Gov. Tom Wolf signed legislation making Pennsylvania the 24th state with a medical marijuana program. Patients may qualify if they suffer from a serious condition, such as cancer, ALS, epilepsy or others. There are a number of restrictions for patients, including the condition that it cannot be smoked.
We hope that advocacy from a partnership of a retired NFL player and a company such as AGRMED with a mission to be the premier provider of pharmaceutical-grade medical cannabis products to patients will hope reform cannabis policies even further in Pennsylvania as well as other states in America.
