Medical Marijuana
Courtesy of
Drug War Facts, a project of
Common Sense for Drug Policy.
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Since 1996, ten states have legalized medical
marijuana use: AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ME, NV, OR, VT and WA. Eight of
the ten did so through the initiative process, Hawaii's law was enacted by
the legislature and signed by the governor in 2000, and Vermont's
was enacted by the legislature and passed into law without the
governor's signature in May 2004.
Source:
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML),
from the web at
http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3391,
last accessed Oct. 9, 2004.
- The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical
marijuana stated, "The accumulated data indicate a potential
therapeutic value for cannabinoid drugs, particularly for symptoms
such as pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite
stimulation."
Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson,
Jr., and John A Benson, Jr.,
"Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing
the Science Base,"
Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research,
Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National
Academy Press, 1999).
- The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on
medical marijuana examined the question whether the medical
use of marijuana would lead to an increase of marijuana use
in the general population and concluded that, "At this
point there are no convincing data to support this concern.
The existing data are consistent with the idea that this would
not be a problem if the medical use of marijuana were as closely
regulated as other medications with abuse potential." The report
also noted that, "this question is beyond the issues normally
considered for medical uses of drugs, and should not be a factor
in evaluating the therapeutic potential of marijuana or
cannabinoids."
Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson,
Jr., and John A Benson, Jr.,
"Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing
the Science Base,"
Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research,
Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National
Academy Press, 1999).
- In the Institute of Medicine's report on medical
marijuana, the researchers examined the physiological risks of using
marijuana and cautioned, "Marijuana is not a completely
benign substance. It is a powerful drug with a variety of effects.
However, except for the harms associated with smoking, the adverse
effects of marijuana use are within the range of effects tolerated
for other medications."
Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson,
Jr., and John A Benson, Jr.,
"Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing
the Science Base,"
Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research,
Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National
Academy Press, 1999).
- The Institute of Medicine's 1999 report on medical
marijuana examined the question of whether marijuana could
diminish patients' immune system - an important question when
considering marijuana use by AIDS and cancer patients. The report
concluded that, "the short-term immunosuppressive effects
are not well established but, if they exist, are not likely great
enough to preclude a legitimate medical use."
Source: Janet E. Joy, Stanley J. Watson,
Jr., and John A Benson, Jr.,
"Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing
the Science Base,"
Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research,
Institute of Medicine (Washington, DC: National
Academy Press, 1999).
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"Conclusions: Smoked and oral cannabinoids did not seem to be
unsafe in people with HIV infection with respect to HIV RNA
levels, CD4+ and CD8+ cell counts, or protease inhibitor levels
over a 21-day treatment."
Source: Abrams, Donald I., MD, et al., "Short-Term Effects
of Cannabinoids in Patients with HIV-1 Infection - A Randomized,
Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial," Annals of Internal Medicine,
Aug. 19, 2003, Vol. 139, No. 4 (American College of Physicians),
p. 258.
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"This study provides evidence that short-term use of
cannabinoids, either oral or smoked, does not substantially
elevate viral load in individuals with HIV infection who
are receiving stable antiretroviral regimens containing nelfinavir
or indinavir. Upper confidence bounds for all estimated
effects of cannabinoids on HIV RNA level from all
analyses were no greater than an increase of 0.23 log10
copies/mL compared with placebo. Because this study was
randomized and analyses were controlled for all known
potential confounders, it is very unlikely that chance imbalance
on any known or unknown covariate masked a
harmful effect of cannabinoids. Study participants in all
groups may have been expected to benefit from the equivalent
of directly observed antiretroviral therapy, as well as
decreased stress and, for some, improved nutrition over the
25-day inpatient stay."
Source: Abrams, Donald I., MD, et al., "Short-Term Effects of
Cannabinoids in Patients with HIV-1 Infection - A Randomized,
Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial," Annals of Internal Medicine,
Aug. 19, 2003, Vol. 139, No. 4 (American College of Physicians),
p. 264.
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"Nevertheless, when considering all 15 studies (i.e., those
that met both strict and more relaxed criteria) we only noted that regular cannabis users performed worse on memory tests, but that the magnitude of the effect was very small. The small magnitude of
effect sizes from observations of chronic users of cannabis
suggests that cannabis compounds, if found to have therapeutic
value, should have a good margin of safety from a neurocognitive
standpoint under the more limited conditions of exposure that
would likely obtain in a medical setting."
Source:
Grant, Igor, et al., "Non-Acute (Residual) Neurocognitive
Effects Of Cannabis Use: A Meta-Analytic Study," Journal of the
International Neuropsychological Society (Cambridge University
Press: July 2003), 9, pp. 687-8.
- In spite of the established medical value of marijuana,
doctors are presently permitted to prescribe cocaine and morphine - but
not marijuana.
Source: The Controlled Substances Act of
1970, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.
- Organizations that have endorsed medical access to
marijuana include: the Institute of Medicine, the American
Academy of Family Physicians; American Bar Association; American
Public Health Association; American Society of Addiction Medicine;
AIDS Action Council; British Medical Association; California Academy
of Family Physicians; California Legislative Council for
Older Americans; California Medical Association; California
Nurses Association; California Pharmacists Association;
California Society of Addiction Medicine; California-Pacific
Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church; Colorado
Nurses Association; Consumer Reports Magazine; Kaiser
Permanente; Lymphoma Foundation of America; Multiple
Sclerosis California Action Network; National Association of
Attorneys General; National Association of People
with AIDS; National Nurses Society on Addictions; New
Mexico Nurses Association; New York State Nurses Association;
New England Journal of Medicine; and Virginia Nurses Association.
- A few of the editorial boards that have endorsed
medical access to marijuana include: Boston Globe;
Chicago Tribune; Miami Herald; New York Times;
Orange County Register; and USA Today.
- Many organizations have favorable positions
(e.g., unimpeded research) on medical marijuana.
These groups include: The Institute of Medicine, The
American Cancer Society; American Medical Association;
Australian Commonwealth Department of Human Services
and Health; California Medical Association; Federation of
American Scientists; Florida Medical Association; and
the National Academy of Sciences.
- The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 established
five categories, or "schedules," into which all illicit
and prescription drugs were placed. Marijuana was placed
in Schedule I, which defines the substance as having a
high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use
in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under
medical supervision. To contrast, over 90 published reports
and studies have shown marijuana has medical efficacy.
Source: The Controlled Substances Act of 1970,
21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.; Common Sense for Drug Policy,
Compendium of Reports, Research and Articles Demonstrating the
Effectiveness of Medical Marijuana, Vol. I & Vol. II
(Falls Church, VA: Common Sense for Drug Policy,
March 1997).
- The U.S. Penal Code states that any person can
be imprisoned for up to one year for possession of one
marijuana cigarette and imprisoned for up to five years for
growing a single marijuana plant.
Source: The Controlled Substances Act
of 1970, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq.
- On September 6, 1988, the Drug Enforcement
Administration's Chief Administrative Law Judge, Francis L.
Young, ruled:
"Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest
therapeutically active substances known....[T]he provisions of
the [Controlled Substances] Act permit and require the
transfer of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II.
It would be unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious for the
DEA to continue to stand between those sufferers and the benefits
of this substance."
Source: US Department of Justice,
Drug Enforcement Agency, "In the Matter of Marijuana
Rescheduling Petition," [Docket #86-22] (September
6, 1988), p. 57.
- The DEA's Administrative Law Judge,
Francis Young concluded: "In strict medical terms
marijuana is far safer than many foods we commonly consume.
For example, eating 10 raw potatoes can result in a toxic response.
By comparison, it is physically impossible to eat enough
marijuana to induce death. Marijuana in its natural form is one
of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.
By any measure of rational analysis marijuana can be safely used
within the supervised routine of medical care."
Source: US Department of Justice,
Drug Enforcement Agency, "In the Matter of Marijuana
Rescheduling Petition," [Docket #86-22], (September
6, 1988), p. 57.
- Between 1978 and 1997, 35 states and the District
of Columbia passed legislation recognizing marijuana's
medicinal value.
States include: AL, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL,
IA, LA, MA, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC,
OH, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, and WI.
For additional research on medical marijuana, see
this excellent
analysis of
medical marijuana research by Common Sense for Drug Policy President
Kevin B. Zeese and this
update from
Common Sense for Drug Policy, as well as
the Drug War Facts section
on marijuana.
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