U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) has joined a bipartisan coalition of 25 senators and representatives calling on President Obama to remove barriers to research medical marijuana and to facilitate new medical research on cannabis and its derivatives.
Murphy said in the letter 23 states have established medical marijuana programs but researchers, doctors, and patients in those states are still subject to federal barriers impeding innovation and medical research.
The senator said in Connecticut, there are nearly 10,000 individuals being treated for debilitating medical conditions – such as cancer, PTSD, glaucoma, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy – who are registered for a medical marijuana certificate.
The congresspeople, in their letter, said the executive branch could take steps to remove the research impediments by ordering the Drug Enforcement Administration to review its restrictions on medical marijuana, which has been classified as a Schedule 1 substance since 1970 because it is considered to have no medical use.
