A new poll found that one-third (33%) of marijuana users would return to the illegal market if cannabis were rescheduled and made available only as a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved prescription drug.
Nugg MD’s survey shows that the federal agencies are working to finish an administrative review of cannabis scheduling. The government would be concerned if marijuana were reclassified.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has suggested moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of Controlled Substances Act. However, this does not make it a prescription drug. The FDA drug approval is separate and does not typically approve botanicals for prescription medication.
The Nugg MD survey confirms this. Many industry observers believe the federal government will continue to allow state cannabis markets operate unimpeded following the rescheduling. However, some consumers and advocates are concerned that the change may disrupt state-licensed business by allowing pharmaceuticals to take over the marijuana industry.
When asked what they would buy if the only way to legally purchase cannabis was at a local pharmacy with a valid prescription, a majority of respondents (55%) said that they would go to the pharmacy. However, 32 percent would risk criminalization by purchasing from the illegal market. Six percent of respondents said they would not use cannabis in this situation. Seven percent would do something else.
Deb Tharp of NuggMD.com’s legal and policy department argued that poll results showed that “consumers will likely lose out if Congress does not step up and pass legislation to preserve the existing state markets.”
She told Marijuana Moment that, according to government estimates more than 35 millions Americans use cannabis monthly. “I think it’s a bad idea to push more than 10,000,000 people into an unregulated cannabis market, because black market marijuana isn’t safe.” The severity of the situation is not entirely apparent to policymakers.
The survey asked about consumers’ preferences in general. 77 percent said they would prefer to use “traditional botanicals” compared with 18 percent who preferred “FDA approved” cannabis.
Just under half (47%) of respondents said that the decision to move marijuana from Schedule II to Schedule III would not affect their access to marijuana. Another 28 percent believe that it will make it harder to access marijuana, while 25 percent say it will get easier.
In total, 85 percent of respondents said that they prefer the federal government to deschedule marijuana (i.e. 85% of respondents said they would prefer that the federal government deschedule (i.e. Another 83 per cent said that they expected racial disparities to persist in cannabis criminalization under a Schedule III classification, while 17 per cent said they trusted the law would still be enforced fairly.
The survey respondents said they preferred a marijuana market that operated in multiple states (69%) rather than “one large, national market” (27%).
Tharp, Nugg MD, said that consumers do not want the FDA or pharmaceutical companies to interfere with their cannabis. “They prefer state-run markets for cannabis. They place a moderate to high level of trust in the state. Many of them will get the cannabis they desire, even if that means breaking the law. Cannabis consumers are accustomed to figuring out how to get their cannabis.
The message that this poll sends policymakers is very clear: if you are not going to go into a dispensary to talk to customers, then at least know what the people who are speaking to them say. Congress must preserve the existing state cannabis markets and create a way that honest, regulated retailers can sell products to consumers without being restricted by FDA regulations.
Since more than a hundred years, policymakers have weaponized the law by using cannabis against people. They know how they can bring this industry to a halt, so it is only natural that they know how to boost it.
While there are differences of opinion about the possible implications of moving marijuana to Schedule III, it is generally agreed that the industry would be exempted from the 280E provision of the tax code that prohibits operators from deducting business expenses because it only applies for sellers of Schedule I or II drugs. According to the new poll, 70 percent of respondents trust cannabis businesses to pass on any tax savings that new regulations may bring to consumers.
The survey from Nugg MD–a cannabis technology company that links people to doctors via telemedicine for medical cannabis recommendation–involved interviews with 795 cannabis consumers from December 11-18.
Another poll conducted last week revealed that Joe Biden would gain significant political benefits if marijuana was rescheduled as per his administrative directive.
Biden does not directly control the outcome. HHS recommended rescheduling after a thorough scientific review was completed last year. However, the Drug Enforcement Administration retains “final authority” in this matter.
In a recent report , Congressional researchers also laid out the limitations to rescheduling. They stressed that existing criminal penalties would still be in place for certain marijuana-related activities and state cannabis markets.
Biden has regularly praised his 2022 scheduling directive and the mass pardons he granted to people who had committed federal marijuana possession crimes. Last month , he issued a new and expanded pardon announcement.
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The post A New Poll Shows That One-Third of Marijuana Users Would Return to Illicit Market if Rescheduling Restricted Access To Pharmacies first appeared on Marijuana moment.
