Marijuana, or cannabis, has been used since the dawn of man for its medicinal purposes; however, over the years it has been deemed void of any medicinal use and made illegal by the federal government. History has shown how marijuana was commonly recommended for medicinal use, then over the years has been made out to be something horrible and wrong. The illegalization of cannabis has had negative effects on everyone needing its medicinal properties, such as jailing; or having to resort to the use of prescription drugs which could eventually lead to substance abuse or addiction. Cannabis has many medicinal uses and could lessen the uncomfortable symptoms associated with their illness or disease. Why are there so many opposed to the use of
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Because of this, a large number of people living in states where cannabis is illegal will be deprived of the option to choose what they want to medicate with and are forced to choose from the more harmful and addictive pharmaceuticals, such as opioids. The number of opioids prescribed, such as hydrocodone and oxycodone, in the United States has significantly increased from 76 million in 1991 to nearly 207 million in 2013. According to Nora D. Volkow on the National Institute on Drug Abuse website (2014), there is an estimated 2.1 million people in the United States suffering from substance abuse related to prescription opioids. The people who opt to use marijuana medicinally, instead of opioids, are looked at negatively by law enforcement and most of the public because of its illegality and the stigma attached to the substance. There are 25 states, plus the District of Columbia, in the United States that have legal medical marijuana. Even with this being the case, there were still 643,121 arrests for marijuana law violation in 2015, of those arrests 574,641 (89%) were arrested for possession only (Drug Policy …show more content…
It is fair to say that most drugs should remain in their current scheduling; however, there are many negative effects that stem from this belief. To start off, the United States spends more than $51,000,000,000 annually on the war on drugs (Drug Policy Alliance). If marijuana was made legal, then less money would be spent on the war on drugs and could be placed into more helpful federally funded programs. Less individuals would be jailed or imprisoned for the possession or use of marijuana. Statistics say that out of the 643,121 individuals arrested for marijuana violations, 574,641 (89%) are only charged with possession of marijuana. Despite the fact that marijuana is classified as a Schedule 1 substance by the US Government, in 2001 the Department of Health and Human Services filed a patent (US Patent #6,630,507) for cannabinoids that was awarded in 2003 for “cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants.” This totally contradiction of the United States Government’s own definition for the classification of a Schedule 1 substance having no medicinal benefits. The US also contradicts itself because “the US Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has approved synthetic versions of the cannabinoid Δ9-THC in the form of Dronabinol (Marinol®) and Nabilone (Cesamet®) for medicinal purposes (Baron, E. P., 2015).” Clearly the scheduling status of marijuana should be reconsidered and
Because of this, a large number of people living in states where cannabis is illegal will be deprived of the option to choose what they want to medicate with and are forced to choose from the more harmful and addictive pharmaceuticals, such as opioids. The number of opioids prescribed, such as hydrocodone and oxycodone, in the United States has significantly increased from 76 million in 1991 to nearly 207 million in 2013. According to Nora D. Volkow on the National Institute on Drug Abuse website (2014), there is an estimated 2.1 million people in the United States suffering from substance abuse related to prescription opioids. The people who opt to use marijuana medicinally, instead of opioids, are looked at negatively by law enforcement and most of the public because of its illegality and the stigma attached to the substance. There are 25 states, plus the District of Columbia, in the United States that have legal medical marijuana. Even with this being the case, there were still 643,121 arrests for marijuana law violation in 2015, of those arrests 574,641 (89%) were arrested for possession only (Drug Policy …show more content…
It is fair to say that most drugs should remain in their current scheduling; however, there are many negative effects that stem from this belief. To start off, the United States spends more than $51,000,000,000 annually on the war on drugs (Drug Policy Alliance). If marijuana was made legal, then less money would be spent on the war on drugs and could be placed into more helpful federally funded programs. Less individuals would be jailed or imprisoned for the possession or use of marijuana. Statistics say that out of the 643,121 individuals arrested for marijuana violations, 574,641 (89%) are only charged with possession of marijuana. Despite the fact that marijuana is classified as a Schedule 1 substance by the US Government, in 2001 the Department of Health and Human Services filed a patent (US Patent #6,630,507) for cannabinoids that was awarded in 2003 for “cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants.” This totally contradiction of the United States Government’s own definition for the classification of a Schedule 1 substance having no medicinal benefits. The US also contradicts itself because “the US Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has approved synthetic versions of the cannabinoid Δ9-THC in the form of Dronabinol (Marinol®) and Nabilone (Cesamet®) for medicinal purposes (Baron, E. P., 2015).” Clearly the scheduling status of marijuana should be reconsidered and