ACS and ASA Comments on Senator Schumer’s Cannabis Opportunity and Administration Act

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Senators Booker and Wyden:

The below signed stakeholders are collectively parties that have an interest in or work with medical cannabis. We are committed to ensuring qualified physicians administer sound medical cannabis advice, that patients have access to high-quality, safe cannabis medicines, and that appropriate regulatory oversight is implemented to protect the integrity and value of cannabis medicine.

Why A Medical Cannabis System Is More Important Than Ever

Now that recreational cannabis is rolling out in Massachusetts, why do we need a medical cannabis system anymore? The short answer is that patients are different from recreational users and have more complicated, precise needs that recreational sales are incapable of handling.

A Federal Framework of Regulation for Medical Cannabis Use

While a patchwork of state cannabis laws exists, the lack of a unified, federal framework regulating medical cannabis places patients at risk, and undermines the relationships that doctors must maintain to ensure an effective and safe treatment paradigm.  Such a framework is both overdue and sorely needed for safe, optimized care of patients across the country. 

The World Needs Big Ideas: An Association for Cannabis Clinicians

In Part 1, “Who Needs a Professional Association for Cannabis Clinicians?”, I wrote about the importance of creating Association of Cannabinoid Specialists when I realized there was a big gap in patient care information for clinicians.