DEA hearing record details arguments over moving marijuana to Schedule III

The Drug Enforcement Administration released transcripts from an 11-day hearing on whether marijuana should move from Schedule I to Schedule III. The roughly 2,500-page record covers testimony presented from June 29 through July 15 and addresses marijuana’s medical use, health effects, workplace testing, impaired driving, youth access and criminal activity.

An FDA official testified that marijuana has an accepted medical use and is more consistent with Schedule III than with Schedules I or II. Opponents challenged the government’s methodology and emphasized differences between standardized cannabinoid medicines and marijuana products sold through state-licensed dispensaries.

The proposed change would not federally legalize recreational marijuana. Manufacturing, distribution, dispensing and possession would remain subject to federal controlled-substance law, and marijuana products would remain subject to federal food and drug regulations.

Read the full story at themarijuanaherald.com.