U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, sent Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary-Nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a 34-page letter detailing her concerns with his nomination and asking him to reiterate his support for legalizing marijuana and other reforms.
In total, Warren asked RFK Jr. to answer 175 questions ahead of his committee nomination hearing before the Finance Committee, with several involving cannabis and cannabis law.
“As a presidential candidate, you said that if elected you would legalize marijuana and use the tax revenue to fund programs for people seeking treatment pertaining to use of controlled substances”, said Warren in the letter. “Section 6 of the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act has a provision that would require the Secretary of HHS to make grant money available for substance use disorder. In the Senate, I am a cosponsor of the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA), which would provide hundreds of millions of dollars for substance use disorder treatment programs. Do you support the MORE Act and the CAOA?”
Warren then goes on to say “Implicit in your position that marijuana should be legalized is that it should be removed from the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA). There is currently a proposed rule to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the CSA. While there are some benefits to moving marijuana away from its current placement in Schedule I to the less restrictive Schedule III, it will still remain federally illegal even if the proposed rule is finalized.”
She continues: “In August 2023, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that the agency found marijuana had accepted medical use and a low potential for abuse, and as such was recommending marijuana be rescheduled to Schedule III. Do you agree with the HHS assessment that marijuana should be moved to Schedule III? If not, what specifically would you do differently? How would your different approach not run afoul the novel approach claims through the more traditional means of establishing accepted medical use?”
Warren also asked RFK Jr. “Do you support funding for housing options for people who use drugs, including permanent supportive housing?”
Warren concludes the letter by stating:
HHS’ programs and services impact the lives of millions of Americans every day. The agency deserves a strong and capable leader who protects the health of all Americans and provides essential human services. The leader of HHS must be a strong believer in the scientific process, and their core mission must be protecting American lives, rather than flouting baseless theories or stripping away rights that put those very lives at risk. I ask that you provide answers to my questions so that the Senate and the American people can better understand how you plan to lead this agency.
The full letter can be found by clicking here.
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