 A bill which cleared the U.S. House in July and the Senate in November has now been officially signed by President Joe Biden.
This is a historic moment for cannabis, as it is the very first piece of standalone federal cannabis reform legislation in U.S. history. The new law gives the U.S. attorney general the power to approve cannabis research applications, and it also creates an easier path for researchers who request larger quantities of cannabis for their studies. It also further encourages the Food and Drug Administration to develop cannabis-derived medicines. Part of doing that is allowing accredited medical entities with Schedule I registration to grow their own cannabis for research purposes. The Drug Enforcement Administration is also now mandated to approve applications for cannabis-derived drugs. One other part of the new legislation requires that the Department of Health and Human Services review policies and provide recommendations for dealing with the barriers into cannabis research in legal states. Lastly, the newly signed bill says state licensed physicians are allowed to discuss the risk and benefits of cannabis and it’s derived products with patients, and it will not be a violation of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) for them to do so. The four co-chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus—Representatives Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, Barbara Lee of California, Dave Joyce of Ohio, and Brian Mast of Florida, have all released a joint statement following the president’s signing. They wrote, “For decades, the federal government has stood in the way of science and progress—peddling a misguided and discriminatory approach to cannabis. Today marks a monumental step in remedying our federal cannabis laws,” and, “will make it easier to study the impacts and potential of cannabis.” The group also added, “Our caucus will continue working to reimagine the federal government’s approach to cannabis and enact further reforms." They said that in the coming weeks they are committed seeing other cannabis measures passed, such as the SAFE Banking package, the Veterans Equal Access Act, the PREPARE Act, and the Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act. Comments are closed.
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