The Trump administration moved to reclassify state-licensed medical marijuana as a less dangerous drug.
According to a file from the Department of Justice, the Acting Attorney General places “drug products containing marijuana that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).”
“These actions will enable more targeted, rigorous research into marijuana’s safety and efficacy, expanding patients’ access to treatments and empowering doctors to make better-informed healthcare decisions,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote on X.
Blanche explained that the move also orders “new, expedited hearing with set deadlines, to fully reschedule marijuana.”
Last year, President Trump confirmed during a White House briefing that the administration was “looking at reclassification” of marijuana.
The DOJ move follows President Trump signing an order to “accelerate innovative research models and appropriate drug approvals to increase access to psychedelic drugs that could save lives and reverse the crisis of serious mental illness in America.”
“In many cases, these experimental treatments have shown life-changing potential for those suffering from severe mental illness and depression, including our cherished veterans,” Trump said upon signing the order, adding, “And the nice part is we’re actually doing this early, but it has been going on. Research has been going on for quite some time. But, you know, usually with things like this, nothing ever happens, no matter how the research ends up, but we’re changing that. This order will clear away unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, improve data sharing among the FDA and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and facilitate fast rescheduling of any psychedelic drugs that become FDA approved.”
