The American Nurses Association (ANA) has sent a letter to the Biden Administration and made public comment to the DEA in support of rescheduling marijuana.
In a letter addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland, the Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration, the ANA highlighted its long-standing support for evidence-based compassionate therapeutic use of cannabis, noting that “Since 1996, ANA has supported nurses caring for their patients with evidence-based compassionate therapeutic cannabis and advancement of research into this area.”
The ANA says that “In these comments ANA agrees with the analysis that cannabis has numerous therapeutic qualities and should be moved to Schedule III. Further, ANA urges the Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Administration to act expeditiously to have cannabis decontrolled under the CSA.”
The ANA says they concur with the Department of Health’s assessment that “Cannabis meets all requirements of the currently accepted medical use test therein justifying reclassification as a Schedule III drug under the CSA.”
The letter says the ANA “strongly supports the currently accepted medical use of cannabis to alleviate disease-related symptoms and side effects”, noting that “due to cannabis being listed in Schedule I, research on its therapeutic uses have been stymied.”
The ANA “has long held that health care practitioners, patients, and researchers using and studying cannabis therapeutically must be allowed access the substance without risk of criminal liability”, states the letter. “Advances in therapeutic use of cannabis made on the state level have left many health care practitioners and patients in a dangerous limbo as they comply with state law but fear federal prosecution. The proposed reschedule will allow full research into the treatment benefits of cannabis and allow nurses and other health care practitioners to give the best care possible to their patients. ANA applauds the work done by HHS and urges the agencies to complete this rescheduling as soon as possible.”
For the full letter, click here,
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