However, the DEA said they will increase the number of DEA-registered manufacturers that simply grow the plant in order to study the effects of it. The DEA announced a policy change created to foster research by expanding the number of registered marijuana manufacturers.
Advertisement
For decades, marijuana has been classified as a “Schedule I” drug with “no now accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse”, on par with heroin. The Washington Post reports that if the drug were classified as Schedule II, a less regulated category that includes OxyContin, Vicodin and even cocaine, it would show the medical community that it was ready to consider its medicinal value.
Although several states, including IL, have medical marijuana policies in place, the DEA asserts that “there is no evidence that there is a consensus among qualified experts that marijuana is safe and effective for use in treating a specific, recognized disorder”.
Dale Gieringer director of California NORML (National Organization for Reforming Marijuana Laws), thinks the DEA, as a law enforcement agency, shouldn’t be responsible for decisions on how to classify drugs. Pot, it said, will remain as it has been since 1970 – a Schedule I drug, on par with heroin.
Oregon. Sen. Ron Wyden agreed, calling the DEA’s decision to expand research opportunities into marijuana “the one little bit of sunlight here”.
The DEA just announced that it will not reschedule cannabis.
DEA released a public report Thursday, where it still considers marijuana a “schedule 1” controlled substance.
Restrictions placed on marijuana cultivation by the federal government have hamstrung research. “This pathway allows the FDA the important ability to determine whether a product meets the FDA criteria for safety and effectiveness for approval”, DEA said in its announcement of the decision. Californians will vote in November on whether to legalize it for recreational use.
Allowing for further research is the latest step forward in the federal government’s evolving position on marijuana, although legalization advocates claim it doesn’t go far enough.
Advertisement
The DEA says there is “no substantial evidence” that marijuana should be removed from its classification. This decision has already drawn ire [Reuters report] from some including US Representative Earl Blumenauer who said “patients and marijuana businesses trapped between state and federal laws”.
