Sacramento, CA: The California Medical Association (CMA), representing over 35,000 physicians nationwide, has called for the ‘legalization and regulation’ of cannabis for adults, according to a white paper adopted by the group on Friday.
The CMA paper, entitled ‘Cannabis and the Regulatory Void,’ recommends that cannabis be taxed and regulated “in a manner similar to alcohol.” The paper also calls for the reclassification of cannabis under federal law “in order to encourage research leading to responsible regulation.”
It states: “In order to allow for a robust regulatory scheme to be developed, cannabis must be moved out of its current Schedule I status. … Rescheduling cannabis will allow for further clinical research to determine the utility and risks of cannabis, which will then shape the national regulatory structure for this substance.”
The CMA is the largest physician group in California and the first statewide medical association to adopt an official position in favor of legalizing cannabis.
In 2009, the CMA adopted a resolution acknowledging that the “criminalization of marijuana [is] a failed public health policy.”
For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, at (202) 483-5500, or Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director, at: paul@norml.org. Full text of the California Medical Association’s white paper is available online at: http://www.cmanet.org/files/pdf/news/cma-cannabis-tac-white-paper-101411.pdf.