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From thecannabist.co
DEA files docs, says no to rescheduling marijuana
Decisions include rejection of medical cannabis, rules on industrial hemp and expansion of cultivation for research
Published: Aug 11, 2016
By Alicia Wallace, The Cannabist Staff
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration filed documents with the Federal Register on Thursday outlining its denial of petitions to reschedule marijuana.
The filings, which are expected to be published Friday, included the rescheduling decision, a rejection of the medical use of marijuana, statements of principles on industrial hemp, and a move to allow more entities to cultivate marijuana for research purposes.
The DEAs denial of the petitions which was anticipated was rooted in the recommendations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, which both conducted scientific and medical evaluations and eventually determined that marijuana should remain a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, DEA officials said.
We are truly tethered to the science, bound by statute, DEA spokesman Russell Baer said Thursday morning in an interview with The Cannabist. Everything we do, everything that were governed by, is contained within the CSA.
The DEA, by definition, is a law enforcement entity that enforces the provision of the act, Baer said. In this case, its determination toward marijuana was weighted heavily on how the FDA ruled, he said.
Congress could reschedule this tomorrow, he said.
DEA: Not a big, bad wolf
Thursdays decision wont change the DEAs marijuana-related enforcement actions, he said.
The nation is in the throes of an opioid epidemic, and it is there not cracking down on offenses such as a mother transporting CBD oil for her daughter across state lines to Nebraska where the DEA needs to allocate its resources, Baer said, adding that the DEA is focusing on heroin, fentanyl, meth, cocaine.
People should not get hung up on this idea that the DEA somehow is still a big, bad wolf, he said. We are not. We are engaged with the medical community. We have new strategies.
We realize that we cant arrest ourselves out of this problem.
In America, 25 states, Washington, D.C., Guam and Puerto Rico, have legalized marijuana in some form. Four of those states and D.C. have legalized the recreational use of cannabis. At least six other states have marijuana-related ballot initiatives this November.
The pendulum is shifting in both the publics perception and the narrative of the DEA, Baer said.
Were really excited about some of these studies that are coming out, he said. Theyre promising, theyre preliminary, but theyre inadequate.
Thats part of the reason, Baer said, why the DEA moved to broaden who can grow marijuana for federally approved research purposes. Currently, the University of Mississippi has a monopoly.
A retrogressive decision
The DEA tossing a bone in the direction of research doesnt go far enough, said Rachel Gillette, a Lafayette, Colo.-based marijuana and tax attorney with Greenspoon Marder law firm.
Im reading this policy, and it seems like theres substantial red tape, she said, and its going to take years and years and years to actually achieve that intended goal, unfortunately. To me, its a very retrogressive decision.
DEA, in essence, is maintaining the status quo which not only is seemingly becoming outdated in the court of public opinion, but also growing increasingly dangerous to legal enterprises, she said. Marijuana being illegal on the federal level but legal, in some cases, on the state level has created a situation where legal cannabis businesses cant openly bank and have to operate in all-cash, creating security and regulatory concerns, she said.
Its just untenable long-term, she said. In some ways, it really incentivizes people to not be as transparent as they should be.
News and details of the announcement started to leak on Wednesday evening and into the night, with DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg telling National Public Radio that This decision isnt based on danger. This decision is based on whether marijuana, as determined by the FDA, is a safe and effective medicine, and its not.
Under the Controlled Substances Act, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I substance, subjecting it to the tightest restrictions. Schedule I substances are considered to have no accepted medical use.
DEA denied the rescheduling, citing it has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use and it lacks accepted safety use under medical supervision, according to the filings.
As detailed in the (Department of Health and Human Services) evaluation, the drugs chemistry is not known and reproducible; there are no adequate safety studies; there are no adequate and well-controlled studies proving efficacy; the drug is not accepted by qualified experts; and the scientific evidence is not widely available, Rosenberg wrote in the filings.
This story is developing and will be updated.
DEA Denial of Petition to Initiate Proceedings to Reschedule Marijuana
http://www.thecannabist.co/2016/08/11/dea-reschedule-marijuana-rules-federal-register/60777/
DEA files docs, says no to rescheduling marijuana
Decisions include rejection of medical cannabis, rules on industrial hemp and expansion of cultivation for research
Published: Aug 11, 2016
By Alicia Wallace, The Cannabist Staff
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration filed documents with the Federal Register on Thursday outlining its denial of petitions to reschedule marijuana.
The filings, which are expected to be published Friday, included the rescheduling decision, a rejection of the medical use of marijuana, statements of principles on industrial hemp, and a move to allow more entities to cultivate marijuana for research purposes.
The DEAs denial of the petitions which was anticipated was rooted in the recommendations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, which both conducted scientific and medical evaluations and eventually determined that marijuana should remain a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, DEA officials said.
We are truly tethered to the science, bound by statute, DEA spokesman Russell Baer said Thursday morning in an interview with The Cannabist. Everything we do, everything that were governed by, is contained within the CSA.
The DEA, by definition, is a law enforcement entity that enforces the provision of the act, Baer said. In this case, its determination toward marijuana was weighted heavily on how the FDA ruled, he said.
Congress could reschedule this tomorrow, he said.
DEA: Not a big, bad wolf
Thursdays decision wont change the DEAs marijuana-related enforcement actions, he said.
The nation is in the throes of an opioid epidemic, and it is there not cracking down on offenses such as a mother transporting CBD oil for her daughter across state lines to Nebraska where the DEA needs to allocate its resources, Baer said, adding that the DEA is focusing on heroin, fentanyl, meth, cocaine.
People should not get hung up on this idea that the DEA somehow is still a big, bad wolf, he said. We are not. We are engaged with the medical community. We have new strategies.
We realize that we cant arrest ourselves out of this problem.
In America, 25 states, Washington, D.C., Guam and Puerto Rico, have legalized marijuana in some form. Four of those states and D.C. have legalized the recreational use of cannabis. At least six other states have marijuana-related ballot initiatives this November.
The pendulum is shifting in both the publics perception and the narrative of the DEA, Baer said.
Were really excited about some of these studies that are coming out, he said. Theyre promising, theyre preliminary, but theyre inadequate.
Thats part of the reason, Baer said, why the DEA moved to broaden who can grow marijuana for federally approved research purposes. Currently, the University of Mississippi has a monopoly.
A retrogressive decision
The DEA tossing a bone in the direction of research doesnt go far enough, said Rachel Gillette, a Lafayette, Colo.-based marijuana and tax attorney with Greenspoon Marder law firm.
Im reading this policy, and it seems like theres substantial red tape, she said, and its going to take years and years and years to actually achieve that intended goal, unfortunately. To me, its a very retrogressive decision.
DEA, in essence, is maintaining the status quo which not only is seemingly becoming outdated in the court of public opinion, but also growing increasingly dangerous to legal enterprises, she said. Marijuana being illegal on the federal level but legal, in some cases, on the state level has created a situation where legal cannabis businesses cant openly bank and have to operate in all-cash, creating security and regulatory concerns, she said.
Its just untenable long-term, she said. In some ways, it really incentivizes people to not be as transparent as they should be.
News and details of the announcement started to leak on Wednesday evening and into the night, with DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg telling National Public Radio that This decision isnt based on danger. This decision is based on whether marijuana, as determined by the FDA, is a safe and effective medicine, and its not.
Under the Controlled Substances Act, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I substance, subjecting it to the tightest restrictions. Schedule I substances are considered to have no accepted medical use.
DEA denied the rescheduling, citing it has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use and it lacks accepted safety use under medical supervision, according to the filings.
As detailed in the (Department of Health and Human Services) evaluation, the drugs chemistry is not known and reproducible; there are no adequate safety studies; there are no adequate and well-controlled studies proving efficacy; the drug is not accepted by qualified experts; and the scientific evidence is not widely available, Rosenberg wrote in the filings.
This story is developing and will be updated.
DEA Denial of Petition to Initiate Proceedings to Reschedule Marijuana
http://www.thecannabist.co/2016/08/11/dea-reschedule-marijuana-rules-federal-register/60777/
