FDA Shoots Down Medical Marijuana

The United States Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that they will not support the use of marijuana smoke for medical purposes. The department stated Thursday that they stand by their long-held position that marijuana meets the three criteria for placement on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. These criteria are a "high potential for abuse", no "currently accepted medical use", and a "lack of accepted safety for use" with a doctor's supervision.

It kind of sounds more political than factual. It seems hard to believe with the medical marijuana controversy in places like Oregon or California that there are no reports indicating positive affects of marijuana for relieving pain. But, the statement cited evaluations by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and National Institute for Drug Abuse, which concluded that no sound studies supported use of marijuana for medical treatment in the US, and no "animal or human data supported the safety or efficacy of marijuana for general medical use."

The FDA said measures in a growing number of states to legalize medical marijuana are "inconsistent with efforts to ensure that medications undergo the rigorous scientific scrutiny of the FDA approval process," and are proven safe and effective. It almost sounds like the FDA would be frightened if someone dropped a big load of cash on them to perform an actual study.