Minnesota lawmakers on Friday approved legalizing medical marijuana in pill or liquid form for a limited number of patients suffering from severe or fatal illnesses.

Minnesota senators voted 46-16 and representatives 89-40 to approve the measure with bipartisan support and send it to Governor Mark Dayton, who has said he will sign it into law.

More than 20 U.S. states have approved medical marijuana and cannabis programs, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Conditions covered include cancer that is causing severe or chronic pain, severe vomiting or wasting; seizures including epilepsy; glaucoma; multiple sclerosis and other disorders that cause severe muscle spasms; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; HIV; AIDS; and Crohn’s disease.

An ambitious medical marijuana bill with veto-proof bipartisan support was passed by the Minnesota Senate, but the same bill bans pot smoking.

With a 48-18 vote, the state's upper chamber sent a message to Gov. Mark Dayton. The Senate indicated that it prefers more ambitious legislation than what the governor and state law enforcement officials wanted.

Should the bill become law, the bill will allow patients take marijuana supplements in the form of pills, oil and vapor, but they would not be allow to smoke the drug. No other state that allows the use of medical marijuana bans the smoking of it.

It is widely expected that the Minnesota House will pass their version of the marijuana measure in the next few days. However, the House version of the bill does not allow for the possession of “crude” marijuana, only marijuana that is highly processed for medical use. The Senate bill allows patients to possess 2.5 ounces of marijuana. Neither allow for the smoking of marijuana.