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The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is moving toward reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug. The Justice Department proposal would recognize the medical uses of cannabis, but wouldn't legalize it for recreational use. The proposal would move marijuana from the “Schedule I” group to the less tightly regulated “Schedule III."... ...The proposal must be reviewed by... a potentially lengthy process... ...Schedule I put it on par, legally, with heroin, LSD, quaaludes and ecstasy, among others... Schedule III drugs — which include ketamine, anabolic steroids and some acetaminophen-codeine combinations — are still controlled substances... ...this move from Schedule I to Schedule...

Cannabis users who contracted Covid-19 had better outcomes and reduced mortality compared to people who do not use marijuana, according to new research presented at a conference in Hawaii this week. A presentation on the study, which was conducted through a review of the medical records of more than 320,000 individuals, was delivered on Wednesday at the annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) in Honolulu. “Marijuana smokers had better outcomes and mortality compared to non-users,” the authors of the study wrote in their conclusion. “The beneficial effect of marijuana use may be attributed to its potential...

Cannabis users soon may be a majority among young adults in the District of Columbia and several pot-friendly states, a trend that points to a potential future of destigmatized marijuana across much of the nation. More than two-fifths of young men and women nationwide now use cannabis at least on occasion, according to federal data, a quotient that has risen steadily in a decade of relentless legalization. Much of the trend is driven by young women, who have all but closed a decades-long gender gap in marijuana use.

The American Trucking Association released a statement in October 2021, citing retiring driving veterans and lower wages as the partial cause for the shortage of more than 80,000 drivers. However, another cause for this shortage is being attributed to adult-use legalization and drivers testing positive for cannabis. A March 2022 U.S. Department of Transportation summary report states that as of April 1, 2022, 10,276 commercial truck drivers tested positive for THC. (Although this is a significant decrease in numbers, compared to 31,085 violations in 2021 and 29,511 violations in 2020.) Cannabis leads the data as the highest positive drug tests...

n Friday the U.S. House passed a historic bill that would end the federal prohibition of marijuana and expunge many cannabis-related convictions. It’s the first time the full House has considered —let alone passed — such a bill.The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act (MORE Act), made it through the House by a 228 to 164 vote. Nearly every Democrat supported the measure, while just five Republicans voted for it. Six Democrats voted against the bill.The bill, introduced by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D., N.Y.), would eliminate conflict between state and federal law and allow states to set their own marijuana...

PUEBLO, Colo.—It’s a common story across America: A city loses its main employer, usually a manufacturing company with well-paying, blue-collar jobs (that often go to China). The city’s economy crumbles, and those who can move out, do. Decades later, and looking peeling-paint tired, the city hasn’t managed to recover, but drugs have found a permanent home. In Pueblo, Colorado, the manufacturer was a steel plant beleaguered by a market crash in the 1980s and worker strikes in the 1990s. And one drug was given a red-carpet welcome. For years, Pueblo has been looking for industries to revive its economy, and...

Former New York City Mayor—and potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidate—Michael Bloomberg called efforts to legalize marijuana "perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done." Speaking at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on Tuesday, Bloomberg said on the subject, according to WBNG-TV: "We have a different kind of problem in America, for example. Last year, in 2017, 72,000 Americans [overdosed] on drugs. In 2018, more people than that are OD-ing on drugs, have OD'd on drugs. And today, incidentally, we are trying to legalize another addictive narcotic, which is perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done. We've got...

A bill to legalize recreational marijauna in Illinois needs only the signature of Gov. J.B. Pritzker to become law. Colorado has had legal recreational marijuana since 2014. The Colorado Division of Criminal Justice last year came out with an analysis of the effects of the state's legalization of retail sales of marijuana since it went into effect in 2014. It found teen use had not increased, but hospital visits and fatal accidents associated with marijuana use increased. The authors cautioned that many factors can influence the statistics in the report, including people's willingness to admit marijuana use now that it's...

A 2018 survey of employers across the U.S. found that 5% are considering removing marijuana from their workplace drug testing panel in the next 12 months[1]. Perhaps more frightening is the number of employers who are on the fence about the removal of marijuana from their panels – a shocking 23% of employers from the same survey. At first glance, removing marijuana from the panel may seem like a good idea – but is it really? Aren’t There Pros to Removing Marijuana From my Testing Panel? Undoubtedly, an employer could identify pros in deciding to stop testing for marijuana in...

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer introduced legislation Friday that would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level and establish “dedicated funding streams” for women and minority businesses to grow and distribute the drug. “The time has come to decriminalize marijuana,” Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement. “My thinking, as well as the general population’s views on the issue has evolved, and so I believe there’s no better time than the present to get this done. It’s simply the right thing to do.” Schumer’s legislation would maintain laws that prevent trafficking of marijuana across state lines in cases where the drug is...