Marijuana: Potential Reclassification

[Rogue]

FDA To Evaluate Marijuana For Potential Reclassification As Less Dangerous Drug
Posted: 06/24/2014 6:44 pm EDT Updated: 06/24/2014 11:59 pm EDT

The feds could actually soften their stance a little when it comes to weed.

The Food and Drug Administration is reviewing the medical evidence surrounding the safety and effectiveness of marijuana, a process that could lead to the agency downgrading the drug's current status as a Schedule I drug, the most dangerous classification.

FDA Press Officer Jeff Ventura described the review process, which is being completed at the request of the Drug Enforcement Agency, to The Huffington Post.

"FDA conducts for Health and Human Services a scientific and medical analysis of the drug under consideration, which is currently ongoing," Ventura said. "HHS then recommends to DEA that the drug be placed in a given schedule. DEA considers HHS’ analysis, conducts its own assessment, and makes a final scheduling proposal in the form of a proposed rule."

The FDA could not confirm how long the review process would take.

The U.S. has five "schedules" for drugs or chemicals that can be used to make drugs. Schedule I is reserved for drugs that the DEA considers to have the highest potential for abuse and no "current accepted medical use." Marijuana has been classified as Schedule I for decades, along with other substances like heroin and LSD.

Rescheduling marijuana would not make it legal, but a lower schedule could potentially ease restrictions on research into the drug and make banks less wary of offering financial services to state-legal marijuana businesses. It could also allow those businesses to make some traditional tax deductions.

"While DEA is the lead federal agency responsible for regulating controlled substances and enforcing the Controlled Substances Act, FDA, working with NIDA, provides scientific recommendations about the appropriate controls for those substances," FDA Deputy Director Doug Throckmorton said Friday in testimony delivered during the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing.

"To make these recommendations, FDA is responsible for preparing what's called an eight-factor analysis, which is a document that is used to assess how likely a drug is to be abused," Throckmorton said.

Here are the eight factors the FDA will consider about marijuana when deciding which schedule it should go under, according to the CSA:

Its actual or relative potential for abuse
Scientific evidence of its pharmacological effect, if known
The state of current scientific knowledge regarding the drug or other substance
Its history and current pattern of abuse
The scope, duration, and significance of abuse
What, if any, risk there is to the public health
Its psychic or physiological dependence liability
Whether the substance is an immediate precursor of a substance already controlled under this subchapter

A DEA spokeswoman told HuffPost that the agency was required to order the FDA to review marijuana's scheduling status because of two public citizens' petitions that asked the agency for a review. A change could put marijuana in the company of cocaine and methamphetamine, two other Schedule II drugs.

This isn't the first time the DEA has asked the FDA to reconsider marijuana, Throckmorton said Friday. In 2001 and 2006, the DEA requested an analysis of the drug after receiving other public petitions requesting that the agency reschedule it. But both times, federal regulators determined that marijuana should remain a Schedule I substance. At the time, the FDA said there simply wasn't enough research about marijuana's efficacy in treating various ailments.

Part of the lack of cannabis science in the U.S. has to do with the federal stranglehold on marijuana research. There's only one federally legal marijuana garden in the U.S., at the University of Mississippi. The National Institute on Drug Abuse oversees the operation, and it's the only source of marijuana for federally sanctioned studies on the drug.

To date, NIDA has conducted about 30 studies on the potential benefits of marijuana. Since 2003, it has approved more than 500 grants for marijuana-related studies, with a marked upswing in recent years, according to McClatchy. In 2003, 22 grants totaling $6 million were approved for cannabis research, McClatchy reported. In 2012, that number had risen to 69 approved grants totaling more than $30 million.

Federal authorities have long been accused of only funding marijuana research that focuses on the potential negative effects of the substance. The DEA has also been accused of not acting quickly enough when petitioned to reschedule marijuana, and for obstructing science around the drug.

Meanwhile, a number of recent studies have added to the growing body of research showing the medical potential of cannabis. Purified forms may attack some forms of aggressive cancer. Studies have tied marijuana use to blood sugar control and slowing the spread of HIV. One study found that legalization of the plant for medical purposes may even lead to lower suicide rates.

Currently, 22 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for medical use, with New York state poised to be the 23rd. About ten other states have also legalized CBD-oil, a non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana frequently used to treat epilepsy, for research or limited medical purposes.

According to a recent CBS News poll, a vast majority of Americans -- over 80 percent -- approve of medical marijuana legalization.

While the FDA isn't ready to get on board with legalization, it does seem more interested in the medical benefits of the drug.

"The FDA has not approved marijuana as a safe and effective drug for any indication," the FDA stated in its latest guidelines regarding marijuana, posted Friday. "The FDA is aware that there is considerable interest in its use to attempt to treat a number of medical conditions, including, for example, glaucoma, AIDS wasting syndrome, neuropathic pain, cancer, multiple sclerosis, chemotherapy-induced nausea, and certain seizure disorders."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/24/fda-marijuana_n_5526634.html

[Stargate]

You know Rouge, I think the truth about what pot is good and used for is not yet known to the world. It is just beginning to sneak out because of technology and the internet.

[Rogue]

Ahhh... thats interesting, how do you mean Stargate?

[Stargate]

Ahhh... thats interesting, how do you mean Stargate?

There are so many countries that have a very long history using marijuana for all kind of ailments that if the science people or the powers that be would tap into that knowledge base, we would be a world with more medical capabilities.

There is also the knowledge of the different kind of mixtures with other plants that is virtually untapped.

[Rogue]

Yes I see and agree.. Maybe Jamaica holds a knowledge base?

[Stargate]

Yes I see and agree..  Maybe Jamaica holds a knowledge base?

Yes, you are right. Most people in Jamaica do not smoke pot, they use it in many different ways, with different mixtures. I my self used it on my mother who was so ill with high blood pressure and nerve problems. There are certain mixtures that some people know and use that are quite advanced in terms of remedies for not well known diseases. The world is so connected in one instance, and so unconnected in the next. Just imagine we could really share all of that information around for the people who cannot afford expensive medication?

[Kaere]

I do think that a lot of time the baby gets thrown out with the bathwater because the situation is either too complicated to face or there's a lack of education. I don't smoke at all and I think that perhaps when it comes to recreational use some people need to learn moderation (the same with alcohol, etc) but for medicinal purposes, easing pain, etc... everything needs to be explored.

[Rockhopper]

Where there's pain to cause you woe,
There a healing herb does grow!

Where-ever you get hurt there is a plant nearby that will alleviate the 'woe'.

MJ has been tested on humans for centuries so we know what the results are.

Tim.

[Stargate]

Where there's pain to cause you woe,
There a healing herb does grow!

Where-ever you get hurt there is a plant nearby that will alleviate the 'woe'.

MJ has been tested on humans for centuries so we know what the results are.

Tim.

Words of wisdom.

[Rogue]

[Monk (in hiding)]

No one ever has died from smoking the 'erb.

[Stargate]

No one ever has died from smoking the 'erb.

yea VM, but many have been healed.  

[Monk (in hiding)]

I use it for healing, but when very stressed about things, I don't use the stuff.

[Rogue]

Legalised Cannabis's Corporate Takeover

[Rockhopper]

Legalised Cannabis's Corporate Takeover

Not surprising really Rogue. Corps. take over many good things and make them worse.

MaryJane has many good uses and those should be explored further. For those who like to imbibe then, as Ka so eloquently put it: Moderation is the key. Makes excellent ropes and sacks too.

I don't smoke it, eat it, chew on it or get it down in any form. Life gives me the highs I need.

Tim.

[Monk (in hiding)]

So you look at the 'erb as just getting high?

[Kaere]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/weird-news/lists/fck-it-i-quit-tv-reporter-charlo-greene-quits-live-on-air-in-spectacular-fashion-9748394.html

KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quit her job on live TV last night, outing herself as the owner of an Alaskan cannabis club and declaring "f*ck it".

Having grown weary of reporting the news, Greene told viewers she would instead be putting all her energy into the fight to legalise marijuana in the state, having previously reported on the Alaska Cannabis Club without mentioning her connection to it.

In a jaw-dropping twist to the end of a segment she was presenting, she said: "Now everything you heard is why I, the actual owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club, will be dedicating all of my energy toward fighting for freedom and fairness which begins with legalizing marijuana here in Alaska.

"And as for this job, well, not that I have a choice but, f**k it, I quit."

[Monk (in hiding)]

[Stirky]

A very controversial subject.

Medical uses yes it does have many many benefits and I think they should be explored and used, but in a controlled sense like any other drug, for it to be used in prescribed medicines.

Recreational use I do not and never will agree with. It does do damage, yes so does alcohol, but I think that needs tackling too. Overuse of smoking pot can cause mental issues (it causes paranoia, mood swings, memory loss, and is very easy to get addicted to, as well as other problems). A lot of people that smoke pot on a regular basis lose their motivation to do anything else, but sits on their buts and smoke pot. It seems to literally suck the life out of some users. It can also lead users on to using other drugs. There are an awful lot of drug addicts out there that just started smoking the odd joint now and again. Using any drug in this manner should not be seen by society as ok.

[Monk (in hiding)]

I see the establishment has filled you full of misinformation. Where did you learn this nonsense? lsol

[Sponsored content]