*The Associated Press contributed to this report
From industry stakeholders to advocates, plenty of opinions are swirling on how to move forward with cannabis reform. According to a sweeping new report, federal health officials need to take a more active role in cannabis policy moving forward.
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Cannabis Policy Impacts Public Health and Health Equity was sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health. The 312-page analysis proposes a health-forward approach to marijuana regulation, emphasizing harm reduction and restorative justice. It tasks agencies like the CDC with helping shape national policy.
“We’d like the federal government to step up to provide some leadership in this area,” Dr. Steven Teutsch of the University of Southern California told the Associated Press. Teutsch chaired the committee behind the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report.
According to Teutsch, public health “took a back seat” as states passed cannabis laws. The report raises concerns over cannabis potency as well as perceived health risks, such as the impact of consumption on unborn babies and adolescents.
“Financial interests played a substantial role in influencing those policies,” he said.
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Among the report’s recommendations for the CDC:
— Develop and evaluate health campaigns about cannabis, specifically for parents, young people, pregnant women, and people 65 and older.
— Monitor cannabis cultivation, sales, use, and health impacts.
— Create best practices for state regulation, including ways to limit youth access.
For Congress:
— Close a loophole that allows intoxicating products derived from hemp to be widely sold, even in states where other cannabis products are illegal.
— Remove restrictions on the Office of National Drug Control Policy that prevent it from studying the effects of cannabis legalization.
For states:
— Require training and certification for cannabis retail staff.
— Automatically expunge or seal records for low-level cannabis-related offenses in states that have decriminalized cannabis.
— Adopt and enforce quality standards set by the U.S. Pharmacopeia, an independent group that sets standards in medicines and dietary supplements.
A CDC spokesperson said Thursday that the agency would study the recommendations and that more money would be needed to implement them. It remains to be seen which aspects of the report the government will accept. But if the DEA moves ahead with moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III, the plant will likely be under the FDA’s purview. Advocates hope government agencies can work together to craft sensible policy, as opposed to the piecemeal approach currently seen across the country.
