Post: Cannabis to Be Reclassified as a Schedule III Drug

The U.S. Justice Department recently moved to reclassify cannabis/marijuana as a less dangerous Schedule III drug. For decades, it was designated a Schedule I drug, officially putting it at the same danger level and abuse potential as heroin, LSD, psilocybin, MDMA, and others.

As a Schedule III drug, if the move is approved (which is expected), cannabis will be in the more appropriate company of drugs such as ketamine , anabolic steroids, testosterone , and acetaminophen-codeine.

This change makes some sense from a pharmacological perspective. My concern, however, is that cannabis’s reclassification will be seen by the public as one more instance of the positive hype that already surrounds cannabis. As I’ll discuss in a minute, that’s a dangerous perception.

For now, here are four key things to know about the DOJ’s proposal to move cannabis to Schedule III:

1. It’s not official yet. The White House Office of Management and Budget has to review the proposal, and it needs to go through a public comment phase as well. However, most believe the reclassification will happen. It’s just a question of when.

2. Cannabis will still be illegal at the federal level. The reclassification won’t affect the drug’s legal status. Though it is illegal federally, medical marijuana is legal in 38 states and Washington, DC, and legal for recreational use in 24 states and Washington, DC. Note: Though cannabis is illegal at the federal level, federal prosecutions for simple possession have been rare in recent years, certainly compared to the misbegotten “War on Drugs” campaign of the 1980s.

3. Research on cannabis will be much easier to do. This may be the best outcome of reclassifying the drug, in my opinion. It is very difficult to do authorized clinical studies on Schedule I drugs, which cannabis has always been. Therefore, we don’t have a lot of good research on its safety, long-term effects, addictiveness, and so on.

4. We’ll hopefully get a better sense of what cannabis oversight looks like. If full legalization eventually arrives, which this reclassification makes more likely, we will now have the impetus to learn from the states […]

Cannabis to Be Reclassified as a Schedule III Drug