Facts About Medical Marijuana in the USA
It’s a cliché to claim that times are changing. However, in the case of medical marijuana, the entire climate that surrounds it seems to be shifting on a daily basis. Numerous research studies have been popping up only to confirm what we have believed all along – that medical marijuana actually works. From a myriad of testimonial, over scientific studies to lab tests, not a day goes by without somebody publishing the positive effects of medical marijuana. It is a drug with unlimited potential and we have barely begun to understand it. Its effectiveness in battling cancer, dealing with chronic pain, epilepsy and chemotherapy symptoms has been proven as well.
Budding Business
Naturally, where there’s promise, there is always a budding businessman rubbing his hands in delight. Another undeniable fact is that marijuana has become a billion dollar industry. This was nowhere more evident than in the case of Amsterdam. However, the US is much bigger market and those budding businesses will aim to please all possible aspects of their target market. Luckily, legalization is moving at a reasonable pace but it wouldn’t be hard to imagine what the media ad space is going to look like once the entire US has legalized recreational marijuana.
Legalization Approval Rate
Regarding legalization of recreational marijuana, a lot of people are actually changing their minds on the usefulness of the plant. The public approval rate for marijuana has never been higher in the US and even doctors like Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who was among the first to oppose marijuana legalization, are suddenly changing their opinion. Whether they have been lobbied or not is another question remaining to be answered but the public has spoken quite loudly on the matter.
Big Pharma
In order to stay up to date, it is essential to understand the difference between pharmaceutical and medical marijuana. For one, the former is simply a derived extract of cannabis that allows you to take marijuana in pill form. The latter is marijuana that is of significant medical value that has been concluded through scientific research and depends on the amounts of THC and CBD within the strain itself.
State Vs. Federal Law
And last but not least, the most confusing part of medical marijuana legalization has to be the law. Even though the US legislation still classifies marijuana in the same class as cocaine and heroin, some states have completely legalized medical marijuana and/or recreational marijuana. Without getting too technical with Washington and Colorado, the latter of which is currently setting an example on how to successfully implement marijuana regulations, it would be best to mention California as a state that has suffered the most due to the discrepancies between state and federal law. This problem will continue to plague many states until it has been resolved on a federal level. Hopefully, it will not ruin a bunch of lives like it has done so far. We believe that the only reason these discrepancies still exist is because the federal law has to keep overall control over the states that have legalized medical or recreational marijuana.