When Sens. Cory Gardner Cory Scott GardnerCook Political Report shifts Colorado Senate race toward Democrat Overnight Health Care: US coronavirus deaths hit 200,000 | Ginsburg's death puts future of ObamaCare at risk | Federal panel delays vote on initial COVID-19 vaccine distribution The Hill's Campaign Report: GOP set to ask SCOTUS to limit mail-in voting MORE (R-Colo.) and Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenDimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' CNN's Don Lemon: 'Blow up the entire system' remark taken out of context Democrats shoot down talk of expanding Supreme Court MORE (D-Mass.) introduced legislation this month to restrain the federal government from interfering with state-legal cannabis consumption and commerce, they galvanized an all-too-rare level of bipartisan, bicameral support. Notably missing from the voices of support for their bill are America’s veterans.

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While the States Act would provide vital protection from federal criminal prosecution under the Controlled Substances Act, it would do nothing to provide legal protection or access to medical cannabis for the nine million veterans who rely on the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).

VHA would still be required under this bill to treat cannabis as a schedule 1 substance — a classification that bars veterans from pursuing medical cannabis as a treatment option under the care of VHA physicians, and potentially places them at risk of losing hard-earned benefits.

This is no small issue. America’s veterans are in crisis. On average, 22 veterans commit suicide every day. Veterans suffer chronic severe pain at rates roughly 40 percent higher than civilians according to the National Institutes of Health, helping to explain why the opioid crisis has hit veterans at a rate two times the national average.

And according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), upwards of 20 percent of the 2.7 million Iraq and Afghanistan veterans will experience post-traumatic stress or depression.

While VHA physicians have been quick to prescribe powerful and dangerous drug cocktails (opiates and benzodiazepines) in response to these and other service-related conditions, how could the federal government continue to deny veterans legal access to medical cannabis as a demonstrably safer alternative treatment option? It’s an option veterans should not only have, it’s one they clearly want.

In October, an American Legion survey of veteran households found that 82 percent want to have cannabis as a federally-legal treatment, and 83 percent believe the federal government should legalize medical cannabis. An overwhelming 92 percent of those surveyed support research into medical cannabis — research the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) would be uniquely qualified to conduct but would remain nearly impossible to do under the States Act.

As a candidate, Donald Trump ran on a pledge to improve health care for America’s veterans and to support medical cannabis. Those two commitments were among the reasons why he won the veteran vote by a 2-to-1 margin over Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonDemocratic groups using Bloomberg money to launch M in Spanish language ads in Florida The Hill's Campaign Report: Presidential polls tighten weeks out from Election Day More than 50 Latino faith leaders endorse Biden MORE.

As president, Trump’s efforts to reform the VA have been laudable, but veterans now need his leadership to remove the barriers preventing them from legal access to medical cannabis.

Republican party leaders unfortunately remain reluctant to advance cannabis reform legislation, choosing instead to perpetuate debunked “Reefer Madness” propaganda and ignore science, patient outcomes and the wishes of veteran voters across the country.

Just last week, the House Rules Committee prevented three veteran-specific medical cannabis amendments from going to the House floor for a vote, despite pleas from fellow Republican members.

President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE can and must break this political logjam by persuading Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellFEC flags McConnell campaign over suspected accounting errors Poll: 59 percent think president elected in November should name next Supreme Court justice Mark Kelly: Arizona Senate race winner should be sworn in 'promptly' MORE and House Speaker Paul Ryan Paul Davis RyanKenosha will be a good bellwether in 2020 At indoor rally, Pence says election runs through Wisconsin Juan Williams: Breaking down the debates MORE to act. With midterm elections around the corner and control of Congress potentially at stake, Republicans can’t afford to lose votes in close races because party leaders choose to turn their backs to the urgent health needs and clear wishes of our veterans.

Being politically conservative doesn’t have to mean being reluctant to change. An increasing number of Republicans get that, and there are encouraging signs that even staunch cannabis opponents are coming around on federal reform. The most prominent example is former Republican House Speaker John Boehner John Andrew BoehnerLongtime House parliamentarian to step down Five things we learned from this year's primaries Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks MORE (R-Ohio).

He recently announced his evolution from being “unalterably opposed” to cannabis legalization to saying “I’m convinced de-scheduling the drug is needed so we can do research, help our veterans, and reverse the opioid epidemic ravaging our communities.”

As a Republican, I was pleased to see President Trump side with states in their untenable legal conflict with the federal Controlled Substances Act by voicing his support for the States Act within 24 hours of the bill’s introduction. But as a veteran, I remain deeply disappointed by the lack of political will and progress in Washington to make medical cannabis a legal treatment option for our former service members.

Veterans have been pleading with members of Congress and Trump administration officials to enact a law that will give them legal access. It's time for Republican leaders to acknowledge that federal cannabis reform is inevitable and it’s time for comprehensive action. We are counting on President Trump and Congress to deliver a final cannabis reform deal that not only respects 'state's rights,' but respects veterans as well.

Nick Etten is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, a former Navy SEAL officer, and the founder of Veterans Cannabis Project.