In a recent paper published in Science, researchers at the University of New Mexico complained that it continues to be extremely difficult to conduct any meaningful research due to the tight grip by the federal government and their continued prosecution of the war on cannabis.
“Millions of patients have been granted the authorization to use medical Cannabis andCannabis-based products by their respective state Health Departments and four states have begun taxing and regulating Cannabis sold for ‘recreational’ purposes,” said Vigil and Stith. “However, the federal government continues to categorize Cannabis sativa as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, a more restrictive categorization than that used for cocaine, methamphetamine and PCP.”
Among the problems cited by researchers, some of the worst issues included:
- Difficulty dealing with the National Institute on Drug Abuse Control (NIDA), the agency that controls the supply of cannabis available to researchers in the United States.
- Difficulty in obtaining DEA approval.
- Potency issues with cannabis grown by the government for research purposes
A recent poll conducted by the New England Journal of Medicine showed the vast majority of physicians in the U.S. believe that medical Cannabis is a safe and effective pharmacological agent for certain mental and physical health conditions (Adler & Colbert, 2013).
