State Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, scored a legislative victory this week when his medical marijuana bill cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee by a 6-2 vote.

Melson, who is also a physician, was cautiously optimistic Friday he had votes in the full Senate to pass it. He wanted to be clear he’s not in favor of recreational marijuana use, however.

“If we have people with situations where they have pancreatic cancer, ALS or Crohn’s disease and can get some relief, I’m all for it,” he said. “I’m not for seeing a car full of kids with smoked-up windows.”

The bill would set up state oversight and a process for prescribing marijuana as medicine. Patients with a valid medical cannabis card could not be charged with the crime of marijuana possession.

Proponents of the bill said medical marijuana has been proven to help people with some illnesses without the danger of opioids.

Opponents asked lawmakers to keep all marijuana illegal, predicting a medical marijuana program would be abused.

Because of his medical background, Melson said there are numerous studies that show how effective marijuana can be in relieving pain symptoms.

“This isn’t the first line of treatment, but it will help give relief to people suffering from a terminal disease,” he said.

—The Associated Press contributed to this report.