The long awaited DEA decision on rescheduling cannabis has apparently been made, and, similar to prior considerations, there will be no change, according to the NY Times, which cited three anonymous government officials. While the failure of the DEA to remove the plant from the Schedule 1 category is disappointing, it will publish new rules in the Federal Register tomorrow morning that offer some consolation.

The DEA will remove the monopoly status of the University of Mississippi to grow cannabis for medical research. In doing so, a major roadblock will be removed, spurring necessary scientific studies to better understand the benefits and risks of cannabis. Ole Miss has had a reputation of not providing quality materials to meet the specifications of researchers, who have also been stymied by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), which oversees all research projects.

It will create a supply of research-grade marijuana that is diverse, but more importantly, it will be competitive and you will have growers motivated to meet the demand of researchers.

John Hudak, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution

Read Catherine Saint Louis’ and Matt Apuzzo’s: “Obama Administration Set to Remove Barrier to Marijuana Research”: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/11/science/obama-administration-set-to-remove-barrier-to-marijuana-research.html?_r=0

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