As of November in Florida we are still faced with many challenges to the medical marijuana industry launched earlier this year. It has given many Floridians access to cannabis treatments for debilitating illnesses and has already seen over 30k new registrations. As weed seems to be sweeping the nation in 2017 a new challenge has emerged. Nationwide veterans push for medical marijuana to treat PTSD and Seizures, along with many other symptoms currently managed with so called “zombie drugs” AKA Opioid. Even with 28 states legalizing cannabis in some form, the federal government still hasn’t responded to attempts made by groups in the U.S. to reclassify it.
The American Legion petitioned the federal government in 2016 to reschedule marijuana so researchers can legally study it. We want to be allowed to study pot inside the united states, where we desperately need testing done. With the current regulations scientists are handcuffed and cannot advance this expanded, new patient care.
Currently veterans that want medical marijuana treatments must go outside the VA, since their doctors wont touch it. Plus these vets have to pay expensive fees out of pocket and can not get insurance coverage for the medicine. This just makes no sense, in states where marijuana is legal the number of opioid related incidents has seen a drastic drop! Insurance carriers submit, these states have significantly lower opioid related costs like emergency room visits, hospitalization and long term prescription pill treatments.
All of this aside, the most likely reason for the feds to reclassify is, that marijuana as medicine works. People want access, legally, across our great nation. In recent polls 94% of Americans flat out support medical marijuana in every state. Many of these people agree that legalizing cannabis for recreational use may be the only way to get through to the current administration. Jeff Sessions has been outspoken in his opinions keeping marijuana laws where they are now, but even President Trump supports marijuana as medicine or recreational and says it should be up to the individual states to decide for themselves.
Recently John Morgan has filed a lawsuit on the “smoking ban” in Florida, and has recreational on the horizon with the “Florida Cannabis Act” to get recreational marijuana on the 2018 ballot. Lets get the honorable men and women who have served this county in our armed forces, FULL access to medical marijuana in Florida!
