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 Shaggy420
Registered: 07/06/10
Posts: 3,372
Last seen: 12 years, 11 months
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 US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits 
#498680 - 11/16/10 07:13 PM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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Opposing Views
Tuesday 16 Nov 2010
The American Medical Association (AMA) voted today to reverse its long-held position that marijuana be retained as a Schedule I substance with no medical value. The AMA adopted a report drafted by the AMA Council on Science and Public Health (CSAPH) entitled, "Use of Cannabis for Medicinal Purposes," which affirmed the therapeutic benefits of marijuana and called for further research. The CSAPH report concluded that, "short term controlled trials indicate that smoked cannabis reduces neuropathic pain, improves appetite and caloric intake especially in patients with reduced muscle mass, and may relieve spasticity and pain in patients with multiple sclerosis." Furthermore, the report urges that "the Schedule I status of marijuana be reviewed with the goal of facilitating clinical research and development of cannabinoid-based medicines, and alternate delivery methods."
The change of position by the largest physician-based group in the country was precipitated in part by a resolution adopted in June of 2008 by the Medical Student Section (MSS) of the AMA in support of the reclassification of marijuana's status as a Schedule I substance. In the past year, the AMA has considered three resolutions dealing with medical marijuana, which also helped to influence the report and its recommendations. The AMA vote on the report took place in Houston, Texas during the organization's annual Interim Meeting of the House of Delegates. The last AMA position, adopted 8 years ago, called for maintaining marijuana as a Schedule I substance, with no medical value.
"It's been 72 years since the AMA has officially recognized that marijuana has both already-demonstrated and future-promising medical utility," said Sunil Aggarwal, Ph.D., the medical student who spearheaded both the passage of the June 2008 resolution by the MSS and one of the CSAPH report's designated expert reviewers. "The AMA has written an extensive, well-documented, evidence-based report that they are seeking to publish in a peer-reviewed journal that will help to educate the medical community about the scientific basis of botanical cannabis-based medicines." Aggarwal is also on the Medical & Scientific Advisory Board of Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the largest medical marijuana advocacy organization in the U.S.
The AMA's about face on medical marijuana follows an announcement by the Obama Administration in October discouraging U.S. Attorneys from taking enforcement actions in medical marijuana states. In February 2008, a resolution was adopted by the American College of Physicians (ACP), the country's second largest physician group and the largest organization of doctors of internal medicine. The ACP resolution called for an "evidence-based review of marijuana's status as a Schedule I controlled substance to determine whether it should be reclassified to a different schedule. "The two largest physician groups in the U.S. have established medical marijuana as a health care issue that must be addressed," said ASA Government Affairs Director Caren Woodson. "Both organizations have underscored the need for change by placing patients above politics."
Though the CSAPH report has not been officially released to the public, AMA documentation indicates that it: "(1) provides a brief historical perspective on the use of cannabis as medicine; (2) examines the current federal and state-based legal envelope relevant to the medical use of cannabis; (3) provides a brief overview of our current understanding of the pharmacology and physiology of the endocannabinoid system; (4) reviews clinical trials on the relative safety and efficacy of smoked cannabis and botanical-based products; and (5) places this information in perspective with respect to the current drug regulatory framework."
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/ama-ends-72-year-policy-says-marijuana-has-medical-benefits
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DRAGON
Doors of Perception
Registered: 02/24/10
Posts: 834
Loc: Somewhere in the Universe
Last seen: 12 years, 2 months
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 Re: US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits [Re: Shaggy420]
#498746 - 11/16/10 10:58 PM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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Its about damn time! 
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"I know that I know nothing"
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Skatealex2
Stranger
Registered: 09/06/10
Posts: 178
Last seen: 12 years, 22 days
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Re: US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits [Re: DRAGON]
#498750 - 11/17/10 01:05 AM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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Nice!
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Samurai Drifter
Stranger
Registered: 10/15/09
Posts: 3
Last seen: 14 years, 2 months
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Re: US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits [Re: Skatealex2]
#498768 - 11/17/10 03:51 AM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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No! It's an evil drug that is destroying our children! The AMA is run by madmen that are part of the liberal conspiracy! 
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Goombah
Esquire
 
Registered: 11/07/10
Posts: 118
Loc: Peoples Republic of MA 
Last seen: 10 years, 8 months
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Re: US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits [Re: Samurai Drifter]
#499764 - 11/20/10 08:04 PM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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Quote:
Samurai Drifter said:
No! It's an evil drug that is destroying our children! The AMA is run by madmen that are part of the liberal conspiracy!
Well sort of. You can bet that the AMAs decision is fueled by the pharmaceutical companies who stand to make billions once it is legalized. The tobacco industries are already poised to start growing. So say good bye to the Mom-and-Pop growers who will probably not be able to afford the necessary licensing fees and set-up costs or who will be unable to compete with big business if this country ever goes ahead with legalization.
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MoeRon
Stranger
Registered: 11/04/10
Posts: 54
Last seen: 13 years, 6 months
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Re: US: AMA Ends 72-Year Policy, Says Marijuana has Medical Benefits [Re: Shaggy420]
#499771 - 11/20/10 08:52 PM (14 years, 2 months ago) |
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