By BRIAN SLODYSKO

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) _ A Senate committee has approved a bill that could make medical marijuana available to those suffering from cancer, glaucoma and a severe form of cerebral palsy.

The proposal by Sen. Fred Mills, a Republican from Parks, would allow patients to consume refined forms of marijuana, but prohibits smoking the plant.

Law enforcement groups have historically opposed medical marijuana.

But Michael Ranatza, head of the Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association, on Wednesday supported Mills’ proposal, saying he had a change of heart due to the passionate advocacy of a colleague’s terminally-ill daughter, who died of cancer.

District attorneys, however, oppose the bill.

Louisiana has had a medical marijuana law on the books since 1991. But the state lacks the framework to dispense the drug.