All Solutions For Medical Cannabis Point To Congress

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Today over 300 million Americans live in states with medical cannabis laws, and over 2 million individuals are legally using medical cannabis under these state programs. However, all of these patients and programs are in violation of federal laws.

The 4 States That Will Be Voting on Medical Marijuana This Year

Medical marijuana could be the law in the majority of states by the time Election Day is over.

Cannabis as a Potential Treatment for Glaucoma

Glaucoma is an eye disorder that occurs as a result of an increase in eye fluid pressure (intraocular pressure/IOP) due to an increased release of aqueous humor (eye fluid) in the front region of the eye or impaired outflow or drainage of aqueous fluid.

Medical marijuana ruling is a temporary win

A federal appeals court gave medical marijuana advocates what seemed like a big win this week with a unanimous ruling that the federal government may not prosecute people who grow and distribute medicinal cannabis if they comply with state laws.

Benefits of Cannabis Terpenes: Ocimene, Terpinolene, and Guaiol

Terpenes are a group of fragrant essential oils – secreted alongside cannabinoids like THC and CBD – that contribute to the complex aromas and flavors of cannabis flowers. They are also generally responsible for many of the distinguishing characteristics and effects of different strains, and this discovery has led to a sharp increase in interest among researchers, producers, and consumers alike in recent years. While much research has yet to be done on terpenes, their potential to offer unique benefits to medical patients has only heightened this interest.

A small step for medicinal marijuana

DEA doesn't reclassify drug but expands growth for research

The Drug Enforcement Administration recently announced it won’t reclassify marijuana as a Schedule II drug, but it did make one change that will allow more research on the drug’s medicinal properties.

A Federal Court Just Gave a Huge Victory to the Medical Marijuana Industry

The federal government cannot pay to prosecute state-sanctioned marijuana use, the federal court said

The Department of Justice cannot spend money to prosecute people who violate federal drug laws but are in compliance with state medical marijuana laws, a federal court ruled on Tuesday. The ruling prevents federal law enforcement from funding prosecution of anyone who obeys a state’s medical marijuana laws.

DEA Paves Narrow Path for Cannabis Research

It’s a federal decision that could mean a sea change for the cannabis world. The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) released a new policy on Thursday morning that will, for the first time, supply quality cannabis to the world of American researchers. The new policy statement from the DEA (in consultation with NIDA and the FDA) outlines a new approach to the availability of medical grade marijuana for science.

Medical Cannabis in Israel to Become More Accessible

• Availability of medical cannabis in Israel to reach an all-time high
• Israeli justice minister mulls decriminalization of marijuana
• Israel must leave marijuana smokers alone

The DEA's Scheduling Decision: What Does It Mean?

Marijuana will remain on the government's list of most highly regulated and dangerous drugs, the Obama administration says, despite growing popular support for widespread legalization.

As states OK medical marijuana laws, doctors struggle with knowledge gap

(Photo: Seth Perlman, AP)

Medical marijuana has been legal in Maine for almost 20 years. But Farmington physician Jean Antonucci says she continues to feel unprepared when counseling sick patients about whether the drug could benefit them.

Gupta: DEA's missed opportunity on medical marijuana: VIDEO

Image Source: CNN

There is really just one salient question when it comes to today's decision by the Drug Enforcement Administration to expand the number of growers of research-grade marijuana while still not changing the scheduling of marijuana: Will this decision make it significantly easier for scientists to study the medical benefits of marijuana?

U.S. will affirm its prohibition on medical marijuana

Marijuana plants growing at a Minnesota Medical Solutions greenhouse in Otsego, Minn. last year. The crop is part of the state's medical marijuana supply.  (Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune/AP)

The government on Thursday will refuse again to allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes, reaffirming its conclusion that the drug's therapeutic value has not been proved scientifically, according to government officials, and defying a growing clamor to legalize it for the treatment of a variety of conditions.

Gallup Poll: Cannabis Use Rises Among Adults

More than one in eight adults in the United States — 13 percent — smoke cannabis, according to a Gallup poll released this week.

Does Cannabis Legalization Affect Employer Drug Testing?

As cannabis legalization continues to be a hot button issue this election season, some business owners and employers are conflicted about their policies of drug testing. Most legal cannabis business owners likely only have an issue with their employees being high on the job. But some employers in other industries with businesses in legal states – which could finally include California this fall – are conflicted about whether to continue testing their employees for cannabis.

Supporters of medical marijuana for PTSD waiting on New Jersey governor

New Jersey's Governor Chris Christie
Image Source: USBUZZBLOG5

Veterans and others in New Jersey are waiting on Gov. Chris Christie to decide whether they'll be allowed to legally treat their post-traumatic stress disorder with marijuana.

THESE STATS ARE EXACTLY WHY BIG PHARMA IS SCARED OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Long Story Short

A study published recently in the journal Health Affairs found that there are significantly fewer prescription drugs being used in states with legal medical marijuana programs. These stats could play a key role in big pharma’s ongoing fight against cannabis legalization.

Medical Marijuana Makes Its Market Debut In Boston As City's First Dispensary Opens

Nearly four years after medical marijuana was approved by Massachusetts voters, the first Boston dispensary opens Wednesday.

Health Dept. sluggish on medical marijuana report: VIDEO

More than a month ago, News 4 began asking the Department of Health when it would have a progress report on the Compassionate Care Act, the state’s medical marijuana program.

RESEARCH SHOWS MARIJUANA CAN REDUCE SIDE EFFECTS OF MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

Research shows medical marijuana can reduce the side effects of multiple sclerosis (MS) and provide relief to those suffering from this illness. MS is an autoimmune disease and progressive neurodegenerative condition. It affects the nervous system, which gradually impacts the entire body.

City Council president, mayor at odds on marijuana referendum

Boston City Council President Michelle Wu

Boston City Council President Michelle Wu and Councilor Tito Jackson will formally endorse the state ballot push to legalize marijuana for recreational use. The move, to be announced at a State House event Wednesday morning, puts them directly at odds with Mayor Martin J. Walsh, who is helping to lead the charge against the referendum.

Illegal Patient Profiles: Finding Life Beyond Prescription Pills

Most doctors think pills are the answer to your problems. It’s not totally their fault; it’s what they were taught in medical school, the same medical schools that teach next to nothing about the medicinal value of cannabis.

Medical marijuana war heads to next battle: VIDEO

Marijuana was sold legally in Florida for the first time this week since it was outlawed by the federal government in 1937.

Can Medical Marijuana Help End the Opioid Epidemic?

Pot for pain is picking up speed. Should it?

Even Republicans are in Favor of Marijuana Legalization

The idea that prohibition has failed is finally starting to catch on for many who have been fighting legalization since the beginning. For the first time in U.S. history, the Republican party is in favor of legalizing marijuana, according to a poll by YouGov – which shows that 45% of Republicans favor legalizing, and 42% are still opposed. While it is a very small margin, it is still one that has room and time to grow.

Loss of DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz Is a Boost for Cannabis Legalization

Image Source: USUNCUT

Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has come under intense fire in recent days over internal emails released by WikiLeaks that appear to show the party favoring Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign over that of Sen. Bernie Sanders. Wasserman Schultz will no longer have a major speaking role at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this week, and some veteran Dems are now calling for her resignation for the sake of party unity. As one top Democrat told CNN, “She’s been quarantined.”

Marijuana May Treat ALS and Improve Survival Rate

Thanks to the Ice Bucket Challenge, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (or ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, as it is more commonly known) has gained media and public popularity all over the world. ALS is a fatal, progressive neurodegenerative condition that occurs as a result of selective loss of motor neurons in the brain stem, motor cortex and spinal cord. ALS strikes all of a sudden, commonly between the ages of 40 and 70. Approximately, 5,600 people are being diagnosed per year. The exact cause of ALS is still unknown, but it is believed to be due to neurotoxicity, inflammation and oxidative stress in the motor neurons. These events impair the brain’s ability to initiate or control muscle movements.

Fed Study Finds Medical Marijuana Laws Calm Cannabis Fears

A new study published by a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reveals a strong correlation between whether a state has legalized medical marijuana and how concerned residents are about health risks.

Medical Marijuana States See Big Drop in Drug Prescriptions and Medicare Spending

Recent findings may show that medical marijuana not only saves state and federal governments millions on Medicare, but it may help curb prescription drug use too. A new study reports that in states where medical marijuana is available prescriptions for painkillers has dipped drastically.

A Salute to Woody Harrelson, Long-Time Cannabis Advocate: VIDEO

Woody Harrelson's cinematic career is an embroidered tapestry of vivid insights into the human condition, exuberant and debaucherous humor, and gems of unadulterated genius. For those unfamiliar with Mr. Harrelson’s luminous work, find him at his best in Natural Born Killers, Kingpin, Wag the Dog, The Thin Red Line, A Scanner Darkly, No Country for Old Men, Zombieland, and Seven Psychopaths, to name a few. Off the big screen, Mr. Harrelson has played an array of diverse television characters, with outstanding roles in Cheers, Saturday Night Live, Frasier, The Simpsons, and True Detective.

Cannabis as a Treatment for Overactive Bladder and Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is more than just an inconvenience, as the sufferer has to go to the bathroom over and over again due to constant and sudden urges, irrespective of time and place. Unfortunately, these symptoms always accompany social embarrassment and mental anxiety and one has to bear it until the bladder symptoms are completely treated.

What Can't Medical Marijuana Do?

Recent studies indicate that the drug is making seniors healthier and helping stem the tide of the opioid epidemic—all while making their health care cheaper.

Things aren’t going so hot in the public-health war against the opioid epidemic that is sweeping America right now. Deaths from opioid overdoses hit an all-time high in 2014, the latest year for which there’s official data, and there isn’t much reason to believe the epidemic will be over any time soon. New legislation provides for a range of policy options for addressing the epidemic, but all will likely be woefully underfunded. States hit the hardest by the crisis are passing their own legislation to combat it, but the different elements of health-care regulation, criminal law, and public-health law that are involved make the scope of the problem difficult to deal with. All the while, groups like elderly Americans are becoming increasingly vulnerable to opioid addiction.

GOP CHOOSES NOT TO SUPPORT THE LEGALIZATION OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

The Big Story

As you’re probably already aware, this week the GOP had their Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. Along with naming the party’s presidential candidate (it’s officially Trump if you somehow haven’t heard the news yet), Republican delegates and leaders also took time to figure out just what will make it onto the Republican platform and what won’t. Medical marijuana didn’t make the cut. And while that may not be the most surprising news ever, wait until you see some of the reasons GOP delegates gave for why they didn’t want to support the legalization of medical marijuana.

First medical marijuana available next week in Florida

In this June 28, 2016 photo, Surterra Therapeutics Cultivation Manager Wes Conner walks through one of the rooms within the company’s 6,000-square-foot facility on the outskirts of Tallahassee, where marijuana plants are in their initial stages of growth. Joe Rondone AP/Tallahassee Democrat

Two years after state lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott approved it, Florida’s first medical cannabis dispensary is scheduled to open next week.

What happens to medical marijuana if recreational use becomes legal? VIDEO

Alexandra Rice sits on the porch of her Grand Terrace home. Rice uses marijuana to battle lupus and depression. She's against Proposition 64 to legalize recreational marijuana because she's worried it will consume the medical market with people who just want to get high. (KURT MILLER, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER) (KURT MILLER)

As she battles symptoms of lupus and depression, Alexandra Rice says she depends on easy access to medical marijuana to control widespread pain and to improve her mood.

Reefer Madness! Medical Marijuana Is Already Saving $165M Per Year For Medicare

Poster for the 1936 film Marihuana. Image now in the public domain

This news will give anti-marijuana crusaders fits.

Medical Marijuana Could Save Medicare $470 Million Annually, Study Shows

Image source: Getty Images

This could potentially be a groundbreaking year for the marijuana industry.

In November, residents in up to a dozen states could be voting on whether or not to legalize recreational or medical marijuana. This comes after Pennsylvania and Ohio passed laws legalizing medical marijuana in their legislatures this spring. As it stands now, half of the country has legalized the use of medical marijuana, and four states (plus Washington, D.C.) allow for the sale of recreational marijuana to adults ages 21 and up.

Study: Why pharma companies are fighting medical pot

High Level, a medical marijuana shop on Colfax Ave in Denver

There’s a body of research showing that painkiller abuse and overdose are lower in states with medical marijuana laws. But that’s always been just an assumption.

Medical marijuana industry spreading its roots in region

David Noble, president of In Good Health, in the medical marijuana company’s grow facility in Brockton

The rollout of the 2013 state law legalizing the sale of medical marijuana has proceeded at a snail’s pace in Massachusetts, with just six dispensaries in operation.

A Guide to Cannabis Allergies and Symptoms

A Growing Need for Information About Cannabis Allergies

Nobody likes allergies, right? In fact, everyone I know absolutely despises them. According to the American College of Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology, more than 50 million Americans suffer from allergies each year. Cumulatively, that’s a huge number of people who will experience some sort of allergic reaction at a point in their life, whether it be to a particular variety of food, pollen, mold, or perhaps a more specific irritant such as cats.

Medical Marijuana Gets Its Day In The Senate

Image Source: QUOTEKO

The Senate will hold a hearing about the medical benefits and risks of marijuana Wednesday, in a move to better understand a substance that has picked up increasing support nationally.

Dems Move Party Platform a Little Closer to Legalization

The Democratic Party heard the call of its constituents and took an unexpected step in support of cannabis reform last weekend, officially endorsing a “reasoned pathway to future legalization." The party also recommended cannabis be rescheduled under the Controlled Substances Act.

With recreational and medical marijuana on the rise, feds re-evaluating how to treat the drug

A medical marijuana user smells a jar of marijuana at the medical marijuana farmers market at the California Heritage Market in Los Angeles, California July 11, 2014. (David McNew / Reuters)

When President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, the federal government put marijuana in the category of the nation's most dangerous drugs, along with LSD, heroin and mescaline.

Residents in These 8 States Are Set to Vote on Marijuana This November

Image Source: GETTY IMAGES

This is going to be a transformative year for the United States. Not only are we set to vote in a new president for the first time in eight years this November, but we could also see the most rapid expansion of marijuana ever, with eight states now set to vote on recreational or medical cannabis initiatives or amendments this fall.

Cannabis catalyst: Medical marijuana could boost business in Florida

Rosie Yagielo runs a marijuana business at the southern edge of a state where medical pot is not available.

Your Grandma Needs To Be Smoking Pot: VIDEO

It's going to be pretty hard to keep weed illegal when your grandparents are smoking it to prevent Alzheimer's.

Study: Medical Marijuana Laws Cut Drug Spending: VIDEO

Co-owner Matt Lawson-Baker looks at a row of plants at Alternative Solutions, a DC area medical marijuana producer, April 20, 2016 in Washington, DC. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

Proponents of legalizing medical marijuana can add another argument to their cause: The laws appear to save taxpayers millions of dollars.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All: BioTrackTHC on the Future of Cannabis Tracking

Cannabis legalization has hit its tipping point as more states are approving medical marijuana across the country. This resurgence of the once-prohibited plant is coming at a time when technology is lightyears ahead of any other prior agricultural product coming to market. At this booming time in technology, BioTrack THC is leading the way in developing systems designed for marijuana inventory and sales, as marijuana is held to a higher standard than other agricultural product or supplement.

In Photos: An Italian Photographer's Powerful Images Help Patients Share Their Stories

Lucia Spiri, 34 years old, Racale. Spiri was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2000. She began treatment with heavy doses of drugs like interferons, muscle relaxants, and antidepressants, but one of the drugs left her with permanent tremors and confined to a wheelchair. Spiri now relies on cannabis flower imported from the Netherlands. Photo by Maria Novella De Luca

After being hit by a car in 2006, Christian Ferri still suffers enduring physical and psychological consequences. Traditional medicine resulted in inflammation of his muscles. So, looking for something that worked without causing him additional problems, the 29-year-old Italian turned to cannabis and homeopathic therapies. The results were inspiring. In 2014, Ferri climbed central Italy's highest mountain, crediting cannabis-infused milk as his core power source. “To climb the Gran Sasso nine years [after the accident] has been the greatest emotion of my life,” he said.

The DEA Can't Legalize Medical Marijuana: New at Reason

Alessandro Di Ciommo/ZUMA Press/Newscom

Rumor has it that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) plans to legalize marijuana any day now. Rumor also has it that Barack Obama is secretly a foreign-born Muslim and that the CIA had a hand in the attack that brought down the World Trade Center. Unfortunately, that first claim is about as likely to be true as the other two, Jacob Sullum explains.