



Americans for Safe Access is asking medical professionals to sign on to a letter urging the federal government to reclassify cannabis as a drug with medical uses.

The open letter, released August 31 by the medical practitioners who serve on ASA’s board, states that “cannabis has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States and an acceptable level of safety for medical use.” Anyone licensed to prescribe medications can add his or her name at the website AmericansForSafeAccess.org/PrescriberLetter.

The letter supports ASA’s appeal of the DEA’s recent denial of a petition to reschedule cannabis, which will be heard October 16 before the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The letter cites the consensus opinions of several leading national health organizations that challenge the current classification of cannabis as a Schedule I substance. The American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians and the American Nurses Association are just a few of the respected professional organizations that have asked the federal government to change its policies to reflect current scientific understanding.



In introducing the sign-on letter, ASA board member Sunil Aggarwal, MD, PhD, notes that the government’s position on medical cannabis “requires strained and ill-conceived arguments,” including a refusal to accept research findings published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

“With likely over 10,000 physicians authorizing patients to used cannabis in medical marijuana programs, which have been around for 16 years, and with the string of positive outcome clinical trials of cannabis and cannabis extracts, there is more than enough medical experience and evidence available to recognize that a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States exists for marijuana,” Dr. Aggarwal writes. “If strong scientific evidence and clinical professional opinions count for anything in policy, then it is time to re-schedule/de-schedule marijuana.”

Dr. Aggarwal’s introduction to the prescriber sign-on letter is at AmericansForSafeAccess.org/Medical-Professionals-Letter.

More information:

See the sign-on letter for prescribing medical professionals.

Source: ASA October Newsletter