The DEA is planning to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III controlled substance. The shift, which would still require ultimate approval from the White House, could broaden access to use marijuana in the United States and may ease restrictions to conduct research on the drug.
Marijuana would still be federally illegal even if reclassified as a Schedule III drug, but a change in classification would put it in the same category as prescription drugs like ketamine and anabolic steroids. Schedule I drugs have a high potential for abuse and have no accepted medical use, while Schedule III drugs have a lower potential for abuse and have accepted medical applications.
There is a growing body of evidence that supports marijuana having therapeutic benefits, including but not limited to treating chronic pain, nausea and vomiting in cancer patients as well as certain neurological conditions such as seizures.
Reclassifying marijuana as a lower-risk drug will have public health consequences. Although its potential for abuse is less than alcohol and tobacco, it is not insignificant. Three in 10 people who use marijuana have marijuana use disorder, according to the CDC. This means that 30% of those that use marijuana use it despite it causing problems at school, home and work or use it in high-risk situations such as driving a car. Since more than 48 million Americans use marijuana, that means 14.4 million Americans will have marijuana use disorder. Is that a number we should accept?
As marijuana becomes more readily available to Americans, more Americans will ultimately suffer from the detrimental health effects of the drug. Although much more research is needed to fully understand how marijuana affects health, smoking it can cause scarring and damage to small blood vessels in the lungs. The smoke from marijuana has many of the same toxins and carcinogens as tobacco smoke and puts smokers at increased risk of developing bronchitis and obstructive lung disease, according to the CDC.
Marijuana can also have important health effects outside the lungs. The drug can have an immediate effect on thinking, attention, memory and coordination. In addition, in the long-run, marijuana can permanently affect the way a brain makes connections to support learning, attention and memory.
In addition to the deleterious cognitive effects; marijuana can also adversely affect one’s mental health. Heavy marijuana users are more likely to report suicidal ideations than non-users; and regular use of the drug increases one’s risk of developing social anxiety disorder according to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
As marijuana becomes more normalized in American culture, its effects on impaired driving and public safety will also be amplified. Marijuana is known to impair balance, coordination and judgement; all of which are needed to drive safely. Unlike alcohol, which has well-established legal limits for driving under the influence, determining impairment due to marijuana has not been developed or standardized legally across America. These legal limits will need to be established in order to protect the safety of Americans on the road in the future to prevent potential accidents and injuries.
The potential reclassification of marijuana from Schedule I to III will hold dire public health implications for all Americans. Although increased availability could help treat chronic pain as well as some symptoms for cancer patients, its detrimental effects on public health and American safety should never be ignored.
