Two Pot Bills Pave the Way for Better Health Research, Decriminalization

By MARK ANDERSON

The House Judiciary Committee on Sept. 13 favorably reported the Medical Cannabis Research Act, sending it to the full House for a vote. The bill, HR 5634, was introduced in the spring of 2018 by a newcomer to Congress, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) — who stated: “This legislation, the first cannabis-related legislation considered by a Republican-led Judiciary Committee in history, makes it easier for researchers to study medical cannabis, and understand its potential uses, benefits, and risks.”

“Currently,” the former Florida state representative said, “cannabis research is stymied by laws that unfairly prevent many of America’s great research institutions from studying cannabis, despite its promise as a treatment for nausea, epilepsy, muscular sclerosis, and a host of other conditions.”

Gaetz added: “Cannabis has the potential to mitigate opioid abuse and addiction, and early studies indicate that it may even help veterans who suffer from PTSD. By giving research institutions “safe harbor” — keeping them safe from legal retribution — the [legislation] will greatly assist American researchers unlock cures that cannabis may provide. Just last month, the FDA approved a cannabis-derived medicine for certain types of epilepsy. Future research is likely to unlock other cures.”

Gaetz went on explain the “Catch 22” that has bottled up progress on this front:

“For too long, Congress has faced a dilemma with cannabis-related legislation: we cannot reform cannabis law without researching its safety, its efficacy, and its medical uses — but we cannot perform this critical research without first reforming cannabis law. The Medical Cannabis Research Act helps break that logjam, allowing researchers to study medical cannabis without fear of legal jeopardy. … This vote will help unlock American innovation and discovery, and help researchers bring the cures of the future a little closer to reality.”

In a nation with a patchwork quilt of state-level “reefer” laws — with some having legalized pot only for medicinal use and others for recreational use — fundamental changes at the federal level could simplify things, although the risk of monopoly control by Big Pharma may very well increase. Yet, many a conversation among Americans for years has covered a recurring question: Why not just treat marijuana like alcohol (or cigarettes) and legalize, regulate and tax it?

Well, under another bill in Congress, the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act (HR 1841), that very thing is under consideration.

Introduced in the spring of 2017, the bill would decriminalize marijuana by directing the Department of Justice “to issue a final order that removes marijuana in any form from all schedules of controlled substances under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA),” a Library of Congress summary of the bill states.

Interestingly, this bill also would eliminate marijuana from regulation under various federal laws including the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act, the 1986 National Forest System Drug Control Act, the federal Wiretap Act, and the 1998 Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act of 1998.

And in the spirit of Gaetz’s bill, it “subjects marijuana to the provisions that apply to: (1) intoxicating liquors under the Original Packages Act, the Webb-Kenyon Act, and the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000; and (2) distilled spirits under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act,” HR 1841’s summary adds.

Furthermore, under the bill, the Food and Drug Administration “shall have the same authorities with respect to marijuana as it has for alcohol,” the summary of HR 1841 goes on to explain. “Functions of the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration relating to marijuana enforcement shall be transferred to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). The ATF is renamed the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana, Firearms and Explosives.”

Gaetz’s legislation, with more than 50 co-sponsors, is bi-partisan. Republican Reps. Darrell Issa (Calif.) and Bob Goodlatte (Va.) are among the “household names” supporting it. It also has the support of Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) who sponsored the heavily Democratic HR 1841—which had around 26 co-sponsors at press time, but with only one Republican on board, Rep. Dana Dana Rohrabacher (Calif.), who also supports Gaetz’s bill.

Mark Anderson is a veteran journalist who divides his time between Texas and Michigan. Email him at truthhound2@yahoo.com.

From The Progressive Populist, October 15, 2018

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