Should Marijuana Be Legalized For Medical Purposes

. Essay, Research Paper

Should Marijuana be Legalized for Medical Purposes.

Marijuana has been used extensively as a medical remedy for more than

five thousand years. In the early 1900s, medical usage of marijuana began to

decline with the advent of alternative drugs. Injectable opiates and synthetic

drugs such as aspirin and barbiturates began to replace marijuana as the

physician’s drug of choice in the twentieth-century, as their results proved to

be more consistent than the sometimes erratic effects of the hard-to-dose

potencies of marijuana (Grinspoon). The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 made cannabis

so expensive to obtain that its usage as a medical remedy in the U.S. came to a

halt. Although now illegal in the U.S., marijuana continues to be used for both

medical and recreational purposes by many Americans. There are a variety of

opinions both for and against the re-legalization of marijuana today. Perhaps

the most controversial aspect of the legalization debate is whether marijuana

should be legalized for medical purposes.

All drugs, both prescription and non-prescription, are federally

‘Scheduled’ by the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency). A drug’s scheduling under

Federal law is determined .according to [its] effects, medical uses, and

potential for abuse. (Claim V). In this classification system, marijuana is a

Schedule I drug, grouped with heroin, LSD, hashish, methaqualone, and designer

drugs. These are drugs having .unpredictable effects, and [causing] severe

psychological or physical dependence, or death. (Claim V).

A closer analysis of the DEA’s Federal Scheduling system reveals that,

according to various studies by physicians on both sides of the legalization

debate, marijuana does not meet the requirements of a Schedule I drug, but not

those of Schedule II. The difference between the two classes is that Schedule

I drugs may lead to death, while those on Schedule II are less likely to do so.

Proponents of legalization cite information that indicates marijuana is a

relatively .safe. drug. .There is no known case of overdose; on the basis of

animal models, the ratio of lethal to effective dose is 40,000 to 1. (Grinspoon).

Even some opponents of marijuana legalization support reclassification. Two

physicians, in a widely distributed opinions piece entitled .Marijuana Smoking

as Medicine: A Cruel Hoax., wrote; .While the reclassification of THC to

Schedule II might be understandable, this would not be the result of smoking the

crude drug marijuana, which would as a result become more available and more

readily diverted for non-medical use. (Nahas). Although this evidence clearly

does not support the legalization of marijuana, it highlights one of many

discrepancies that cloud this smoky debate.

Lester Grinspoon, MD, is a proponent of the medical legalization and re-

classification of marijuana. In the Journal of the American Medical Association,

Dr. Grinspoon wrote an article entitled .A Plea for Reconsideration.. In this

plea, Grinspoon suggests that marijuana should be reclassified to a Schedule II

class drug, so that it might be legally prescribed. He writes:

In a 1990 survey, 44% of oncologists said they had suggested

that a patient smoke marihuana for relief of the nausea

induced by chemotherapy. If marihuana were actually unsafe

for use under medical supervision, as its Schedule I status

explicitly affirms, this recommendation would be unthinkable.

It is time for physicians to acknowledge more openly that

this present classification is scientifically, legally, and

morally wrong. (Grinspoon)

Like many other physicians fighting for the re-classification of marijuana, Dr.

Grinspoon makes claims only towards the drug’s medical benefits. However, their

rhetoric in calling the issue .morally wrong. suggests that they may have other

motives as well.

Furthermore, the fact that .44% of oncologists. suggested their patients

use marijuana, despite its illegality, may suggest that many of these physicians

have little respect for post-prohibition laws. The article also fails to address

the negative side-effects of marijuana that result from smoking the plant.

While there are many physicians who support the reclassification (and,

sometimes, legalization) of marijuana, still others make different claims. In

July of 1995, one month after .Marijuana as Medicine- A Plea for Reconsideration.

was published in JAMA, the Department of Health and Human Services held its

first research conference on marijuana. At this conference, several respected

physicians noted that .marijuana use during pregnancy has harmful effects on

children’s intellectual abilities… compulsive marijuana use may lead to an

addiction similar to that of other illicit drugs…. (Claim V); and, finally,

that .marijuana use can put a serious choke-hold on users who try to quit.

Внимание, отключите Adblock

Вы посетили наш сайт со включенным блокировщиком рекламы!
Ссылка для скачивания станет доступной сразу после отключения Adblock!

Скачать