Hartford – As anticipated, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy today signed into law a bill that legalizes medical marijuana starting Oct. 1 for adult patients who suffer from certain debilitating conditions.

The state Department of Consumer Protection will oversee the new strict regulatory framework for dispensing the drug.

Qualified patients must obtain a doctor's prescription for a one-month supply of marijuana and only licensed pharmacists can give it out from a set number of approved "dispensaries." Only licensed, in-state producers can grow the weed.

"For years we've heard from so many patients with chronic diseases who undergo treatments like chemotherapy or radiation and are denied the palliative benefits that medical marijuana would provide," Malloy said in a statement. "With careful regulation and safeguards, this law will allow a doctor and a patient to decide what is in that patient's best interest."

The legislation passed the state House of Representatives 96 to 51 and the Senate 21 to 13. Both votes were largely but not entirely along party lines.

Critics argued that medical marijuana can lead to more recreational drug use and be a gateway to full legalization in the future. They also stressed how marijuana remains illegal under federal law, and state legalization may not necessarily protect dispensaries and growers from federal raids and prosecution.

The legislature in 2007 approved a medical marijuana bill that was vetoed by then-Gov. M. Jodi Rell. That bill, unlike the new law, would have allowed patients to grow marijuana at home.