Cannabis Rescheduling and Its Possible Effect

The DEA and FDA are departments in the government that federally govern the introduction of various pharmaceutical drugs and their entrance onto the marketplace. The same is true for medical marijuana.

Recently, Congress distributed a memo, announcing its intention of making a determination about cannabis rescheduling. The DEA, in its decision, appears to now believe that marijuana does have medicinal value and so, deserves to be put into a lower schedule than it is right now.

The Announcement of Cannabis Rescheduling

The announcement has cannabis advocates quite elated. This new development only serves to prove what cannabis advocates and medical personnel have always thought about the positive use and benefits of marijuana.

With this action, the federal government appears to now acknowledge that medical marijuana is of therapeutic value. This is something that many in the medical community have always known. In that case, medical marijuana should not receive the same classification as hard drugs like cocaine and heroin as was done in the past.

The Impact

Cannabis rescheduling makes this possible. No longer would marijuana be placed in the same category as dangerous drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Of course, cannabis patients will also be pleased about the new development. Many people are optimistic, except that it may be too early to think that this will last for too long.

Here is why. In the past, the DEA has gone down this same path and nothing happened. Therefore, is it likely that this new cannabis rescheduling will be something of a reality? And, if this reclassification of cannabis is finally a reality, will it have a possible impact on the cannabis industry? Is cannabis rescheduling likely and how likely is it? These are some of the questions that should be brought to light.

The Likelihood

Contrary to media reports, the memo from the DEA did not indicate the likelihood of cannabis rescheduling taking place any time soon. The administration, in its memo, only made a statement that it had attained the cannabis rescheduling proposal from the FDA and that a determination would have been released in the early months of 2016.

Is It A Joke?

One thing that should give even more pause is the fact that Chuck Rosenberg, the head of the DEA made the statement in November 2016 that “the notion marijuana is also medicinal” is a “joke.” Yes, the director of the DEA stated that medical cannabis was a possible joke. However, there are several studies that say differently. It is fair to say, then, that the DEA has totally ignored the opinion of the scientific and medical communities.

The Support for Cannabis Rescheduling

Some people are still optimistic that the petition for cannabis rescheduling would have stood a better chance to be executed than it was at other times. Why? Well, it is obvious that there has been overwhelming support for medical marijuana, not just in the public space, but also from the political arena as well as medical and science communities. In other words, there is a wider appeal for it in society at large.

Moving Forward

It is safe to say that the DEA would move forward cautiously with cannabis rescheduling since it already determined in the past that marijuana was a dangerous drug. Now that there is an obvious hint that cannabis rescheduling could be possible, there is hope, but considering the history of the DEA, we can only be cautiously optimistic.

It is not sensible to classify marijuana with drugs like heroin that take people's lives each year. That could be the reason why the DEA is reconsidering its stance.

The Bottom Line

While it would not reduce the criminal penalties associated with marijuana possession, cannabis rescheduling would encourage more medical research. Cannabis rescheduling, though, would aid in solving the banking and tax issues within the cannabis industry.

The bottom line is that cannabis rescheduling would be the right thing to do. It would provide an expanded access to cannabis patients. If you want to learn more about cannabis and its progress, visit the Cannabis Training University, cannabis training institute.