“The rush to provide senior citizens with medical marijuana will require considerable legal, scientific and commercial infrastructures, which, in an ideal world, would avoid repeating historical mistakes by forming with clarity and coordination.”
By Emily Dufton
Everyone knows that last month was historic for cannabis. Big changes are afoot with medical marijuana’s rescheduling and federal Medicare coverage for hemp.
But what many have misunderstood is why.
For the first time in 56 years, a form of marijuana has finally escaped Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Cannabis was placed there in 1970, and despite repeated prior legalization attempts—including in the 40 states that legalized medical access and the 24 states that legalized recreational use—for over half a century cannabis remained stubbornly defined as a substance with no accepted medical use and high potential for abuse.
Until last month, when Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche moved medical marijuana into Schedule III, a category of drugs with some accepted medical use and “moderate-to-low” potential for dependence.
This rescheduling includes medical products currently legal in 40 states and Washington, D.C., and the four cannabis products approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These products are now all Schedule III, which
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