(Radio Iowa) — More than 15-hundred Iowans have signed a petition urging Governor Kim Reynold to sign a bill that expands the state’s medical marijuana program. Paul Nye of Ankeny was part of the group that delivered the petitions to the governor’s office Thursday.

“We want to send the message that Iowans are ready,” Nye says. “They’re a progressive state. We’re a healthy state and this is a healthy alternative to some of the painkillers out there.” Nye says he used opioids for more than a decade, but for the past six months cannabis products are helping him deal with his chronic back pain.

“I think it’s a lifesaver,” Nye says. “I think that many Iowans stand to benefit from the use of this medicine and an arbitrary cap doesn’t make a lot of sense.” The legislation changes the measurement of the chemical T-H-C that’s allowed in cannabis products sold in five state-licensed locations. Under current law, the chemical component credited with causing the “high” associated with smoking marijuana is limited to three percent in the oils, creams and pills being sold in Iowa.

The bill sets the limit in grams over a 90 day period and could let more potent products be sold in Iowa. Several lawmakers who voted for the bill have since called on Governor Reynolds to veto it because the state medical marijuana advisory board did not recommend the change.