Medical marijuana legislation could be signed into law by the end of the week after the state Senate gives overwhelming passage to a House bill that allows those with eight medical conditions including seizure disorders, late-stage cancer, and ALS to legally possess cannabis oil for treatment.

Bill sponsor Rep. Allen Peake (R-Macon) will ask his House colleagues Wednesday to sign off on Senate changes made to the legislation. 

"I'm excited as can be for these families and for the medical refugees that have had to move to another state who can now legally possess cannabis oil so they can come back home," he says.

Among those medical refugees is Vince Sievert's 20-year-old daughter Miranda who has epilepsy. He moved her along with his wife and younger daughter to Colorado in November so she would receive cannabis oil to control her seizures.

"She started out over there having daily seizures, sometimes as many as 20 seizures; now she's gone as long as three weeks without seizures," he tells WSB's Sandra Parrish.

The bill will also help those unable to leave Georgia like Shannon Cloud whose 9-year-old daughter Alaina suffers seizures.

"She's on five medications and we hope that we can get her off of some of those medications if cannabis oil works for her; she might wake up and be a completely different child when she's not addicted and high on the medications she's on now," she says.

The bill requires those who qualify to first obtain permission from a physician before registering with the state.

The measure also creates a commission to study an in-state grow program for Georgia.  Peake says even more families could be helped if the state could grow and manufacture its own product. The commission will deliver its findings by the end of the year.

Gov. Nathan Deal, who has been a supporter of the legislation this session, is expected to sign the bill later this week.