It's Time To Remove Cannabis From The Federal Drug Schedules

Ben Curren        

When the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) passed almost 50 years ago, it created a classification system, known as drug schedules, that prescribe how the federal government views and responds to specific drug compounds. Under this system, those listed on Schedule I are generally perceived as unsafe, having a high potential for abuse, and having no accepted medical use.

Heroin, LSD, and Ecstasy are all on the CSA’s Schedule I – as is cannabis.

Marijuana and money on wooden backgroundGetty

The matrix descends according to a decreasing abuse potential and increasing medical use, meaning that at the Schedule V level, included drugs are standard over-the-counter medications, “generally used for antidiarrheal, antitussive, and analgesic purposes,” according to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.

In theory, this sounds reasonable, but, in practice, it is not. For one thing, the Schedule I designation means the federal government views cannabis to be more dangerous than cocaine, crystal meth and fentanyl, all of which are on Schedule II. For another, 33 states and the District of Columbia have disagreed and seen fit to legalize cannabis for recreational and/or medical purposes.


That’s why it’s long past time for cannabis to be descheduled.

A key criterion for Schedule I listing is that a drug has no currently accepted medical use. This runs contrary to the fact that certain states have legalized cannabis for medical use so that physicians can prescribe it for patients suffering from a variety of maladies, including epilepsy, cancer and Parkinson’s Disease.

At the federal level, the Food and Drug Administration has approved three cannabanoids, a derivative of cannabis, for use in medicine. For example, Epidiolex includes the non-psychoactive compound cannabidiol (CBD) derived from cannabis to treat seizures associated with two rare and severe forms of epilepsy. The FDA also approved synthetic cannabinoids for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and AIDS patients.

This is a modest start, but, to get more drugs through the FDA process, much more research is needed to create a scientific consensus. One reason there has been so little in the United States is precisely because cannabis is listed on Schedule I, a designation that creates significant barriers to pursuing federally funded research into potential medical benefits. This was recently backed up by U.S.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who said, “one of the concerns that I have with marijuana is the difficulty that folks have to do research on it, because of the scheduling system.” Interestingly, it is easier to obtain funding and approval for cocaine research, which is a Schedule II drug.

This current research deficit leads regulators to make decisions based on a vacuum of information, and that can cut both for and against medical use advocates. The state and federal government, physicians, and patients need more data and conclusions.

In addition, considering widespread state-level legalization, conducting appropriate research is more important than ever. We know already, for example, that cannabis has potential beyond THC’s psychoactive effects. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “THC can increase appetite and reduce nausea” and “may also decrease pain, inflammation (swelling and redness), and muscle control problems.” NIH also recognizes CBD as a cannabinoid with medical interest for its potential use in “reducing pain and inflammation, controlling epileptic seizures, and possibly even treating mental illness and addictions.”

Cannabis plants also generate many other compounds that have shown health potential, including terpenes, which are responsible for the varying smells, tastes, and effects brought on by consuming cannabis products. Loosening restrictions will allow doctors and researchers to look closely at the chemical structure and effects of cannabis, enhancing our understanding and making uses even more effective and safe.

Indeed, it’s troubling that, historically, it has been much easier to obtain funding to study the potential abuse of cannabis than its potential medical benefits.

That may be changing, though. Earlier this year, FDA officials called for public comments about potentially changing scheduling for 16 substances, including cannabis. And, in a recent report, the Senate Appropriations Committee wrote that “at a time when we need as much information as possible about these drugs, we should be lowering regulatory and other barriers to conducting this research.”

There is no doubt that if  cannabis is descheduled, it will be a boon for the industry. At the very least, it’s reassuring that some in the federal government are beginning to acknowledge the need to take a closer look. Cannabis and its potential benefits are entering the mainstream of American society, and removing the barriers to understanding it is long overdue.