“Nurses have long known through their own first hand experience working with patients that cannabis holds legitimate therapeutic value. That is why, historically, nurses and nursing groups have been among some of the strongest and most outspoken advocates for changes in marijuana policy.”
“Although the HHS is not recommending descheduling at this time, NORML asserts that this position is the most appropriate one and that descheduling cannabis should be adopted by future administrations.”
“NORML is in a unique position to mobilize interested parties to provide their perspectives throughout the public comment period and we will be encouraging advocates and experts to do so in the coming weeks.”
In a video message, the President called the proposed scheduling change “monumental.”
Vice President Harris emphasized that “nobody should have to go to jail” for marijuana use, and lamented that “far too many Americans” have faced serious legal consequences for minor marijuana offenses.
Federal health officials concluded, “The risks to the public health posed by marijuana are low compared to other drugs of abuse,” such as benzodiazepines — a Schedule IV drug, or alcohol, which is unscheduled.
“It is significant for these health agencies to acknowledge publicly, for the first time, what many patients and advocates have known for decades: that cannabis is a safe and effective therapeutic agent for tens of millions of Americans.”
“This milestone reflects the reality that advocates have been engaged in a multi-decade long struggle to compel the federal government to acknowledge the obvious: that cannabis possesses therapeutic benefits. It also highlights the fact that the federal government’s ongoing refusal to do so has been strictly a political decision.”