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MARIJUANA MOMENT

DEA APPEARS TO QUESTION MARIJUANA’S MEDICAL VALUE DESPITE RESCHEDULING
RECOMMENDATION


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POLITICS


DEA APPEARS TO QUESTION MARIJUANA’S MEDICAL VALUE DESPITE RESCHEDULING
RECOMMENDATION

Published

3 seconds ago

on

May 10, 2024

By

Ben Adlin

In the wake of the federal government’s marijuana rescheduling announcement last
week that acknowledged the medical benefits of cannabis, the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) on Thursday released a report that appears to question the
legitimacy of state medical programs.

“Marijuana remains illegal at the federal level; it has been ‘legalized’ or
‘decriminalized’ at the state level for recreational use in 24 states and the
District of Columbia, and for ‘medical’ use in 38 states and the District of
Columbia,” the annual National Drug Threat Assessment says, appearing to call
those state-level changes and the medical value of cannabis into question by
putting scare quotes around key words.

That’s despite the fact that DEA recently agreed to a Department of Health and
Human Services recommendation to move cannabis to Schedule III of the Controlled
Substances Act, acknowledging for the first time that cannabis has an accepted
medical use in the U.S.

Marijuana Legalization Linked To Decline In Beer Sales

Marijuana Legalization Linked To Decline In Beer Sales
A recent Canadian study suggests that the legalization of marijuana has led to a
decrease in beer sales.  “Canada-wide beer sales fell by 96 hectoliters per
100,000 population immediately after non-medical cannabis legalization and by 4
hectoliters per 100,000 population each month thereafter for an average monthly
reduction of 136 hectoliters per 100,000 population post-legalization,” the
researchers from University of Manitoba, Memorial University of Newfoundland and
University of Toronto found. The researchers speculate that a substitution
effect may be occurring, with consumers increasingly choosing marijuana over
beer.  Interestingly, the trend did not extend to sales of spirits.  When broken
down by beer type, the study found declines in sales of canned and kegged beer
but no reduction in sales of bottled beer.  “One possible explanation is that
cans may be preferred to bottle in the context of individual consumption at home
due to the increasing popularity and availability of cans as well as the better
taste and drinking experience that they offer,” the study says.  Additionally,
recent data shows that Canada generated more excise tax revenue from marijuana
than wine and beer combined in the 2022-23 fiscal year.  Similarly, in several
legal jurisdictions in the United States, cannabis sales have outpaced alcohol
sales.  A multinational investment bank noted in a recent report that marijuana
has become a significant competitor to alcohol.  It also says marijuana sales
are estimated to reach $37 billion in 2027 in the U.S. as more state markets
come online.
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The comments make up only a small part of the 57-page annual report, which the
agency said analyzes “illicit drug threats and trafficking trends endangering
the United States.”

The top-level findings, according to a statement from DEA Administrator Anne
Milgram, are that the country’s shift toward synthetic substances such as
fentanyl and methamphetamine—which she blamed largely on international
cartels—has caused unprecedented harm.



“The shift from plant-based drugs, like heroin and cocaine, to synthetic,
chemical-based drugs, like fentanyl and methamphetamine, has resulted in the
most dangerous and deadly drug crisis the United States has ever faced,” Milgram
said. “At the heart of the synthetic drug crisis are the Sinaloa and Jalisco
cartels and their associates, who DEA is tracking world-wide.”

“The suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and money-launderers all play a
role in the web of deliberate and calculated treachery orchestrated by these
cartels,” her statement continued. “DEA will continue to use all available
resources to target these networks and save American lives.”



In 2022, drug-related deaths killed 107,941 people in the United States, DEA
said in its press release about the new assessment. “Fentanyl and other
synthetic opioids are responsible for approximately 70% of lives lost,” it says,
“while methamphetamine and other synthetic stimulants are responsible for
approximately 30% of deaths.”

The agency press release doesn’t mention marijuana, though this year’s National
Drug Threat Assessment itself does include some cannabis-related details.

Unlike unregulated markets for synthetic drugs, for example, the DEA report says
that the main suppliers of illicit marijuana “are cannabis growers and
processors operating inside the United States.”

Despite state-level regulation in many states, it continues, “the black market
for marijuana continues, with substantial trafficking by Mexican cartels, and
Chinese and other Asian organized crime groups profiting from illegal
cultivation and sales, as well as exploitation of the ‘legal’ market.”



Recently released federal data from 2023, however, show that marijuana seizures
at the U.S.–Mexico border have in fact fallen to their lowest level in recent
history, dropping 29 percent from 2022. The 2023 figures mark a 98 percent
decline in cannabis intercepted at the southern border since 2013.






DEA’s report says that while the Sinaloa cartel does collect “billions of
dollars in the illicit synthetic trade,” it also “has never stopped trafficking
cocaine, heroin, and marijuana.” The Jalisco cartel, meanwhile, which DEA
credits as “the main supplier of cocaine to U.S. markets,” also “traffic ton
quantities of heroin and marijuana into the United States.”

A separate recent budget submission from DEA to congressional lawmakers
reflected the agency’s focus on synthetic substances, primarily fentanyl, noting
that the ongoing drug overdose epidemic—which includes deaths from substances
many users didn’t realize they were taking—claims lives at a rate of one every
five minutes. Marijuana and psilocybin are mentioned only briefly, as subjects
of further federally approved research.

DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment also points to evidence from the
University of Mississippi’s Marijuana Potency Monitoring Program indicating that
the average delta-9 THC levels “in leafy marijuana is at an all-time high,
increasing the potential risk of negative effects on users of any form of the
drug, and on children who may consume edibles made with these substances.”



An included graph citing the University of Mississippi program shows average THC
rising from around 1 percent in 1977 to roughly 16 percent in 2022.

THC edibles, meanwhile, “are leading to an increase in child and adolescent
admissions to Emergency Rooms,” the DEA report says. Despite warning letters
issued for products containing federally unregulated delta-8 THC, which is
typically derived from hemp crops authorized under the 2018 Farm Bill, the
agency said “the concern remains that children will unknowingly eat THC-infused
products, regardless of warning labels, because the products mimic the
appearance of the actual product, and the packages look nearly identical to the
legitimate product’s packaging.”



An included photo from the Lancaster County Drug Task Force in Pennsylvania
shows a variety of delta-8 THC products labeled with product names such as
Ruffles, Cookie Crisp, Nerds and Frosted Flakes.

The DEA report does not clarify that products on state-regulated marijuana
markets are almost universally prohibited from mimicking mainstream food
products, including depictions of cartoon animals or otherwise appealing to
children.

Additionally, DEA says in its threat assessment that illegal cannabis grows can
wreak havoc on the environment.

“Illegal outdoor marijuana grows, usually found on public lands, use toxic
fertilizers and pest repellants that endanger non-pest wildlife, damage
surrounding plants, and seep into water supplies,” the report says. “These sites
are mainly located in remote, difficult-to-access areas and can be expensive for
cultivators to maintain but are also challenging for law enforcement to detect
and eradicate.”



“Indoor cultivation,” it continues, “can operate year-round and offer the drug
traffickers a continuous profit stream but can severely damage the homes where
the grows are established, creating health and safety hazards to first
responders.”

The document is largely silent on psychedelics, which have also become the
subject of reform discussions at the state and federal levels. It acknowledges
the substances in a section on “new psychoactive substances.”

“Several of these ‘novel’ drugs have actually been around for decades but
experience periodic surges in popularity or return to the illegal drug market
with tweaks after the original substance was banned or controlled,” it says.
Among others, such as MDMA, “Various plant-based substances also fall into this
category, such as psilocybin (mushrooms); ayahuasca; salvia divinorum (Magic
Mint, Sally D) and khat.”

Far from being a “new” substance, however, human use of psilocybin is believed
to go back thousands of years. The existence of psilocybin mushrooms, meanwhile,
may stretch back to the time of the dinosaurs’ demise, according to research
released earlier this year.

> Cory Booker Visits Marijuana Manufacturer In California Amid Renewed Push For
> Federal Legalization Bill



Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.

Marijuana Moment is made possible with support from readers. If you rely on our
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Related Topics:featured

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Ben Adlin


Ben Adlin, a senior editor at Marijuana Moment, has been covering cannabis and
other drug policy issues professionally since 2011. He was previously a senior
news editor at Leafly, an associate editor at the Los Angeles Daily Journal and
a Coro Fellow in Public Affairs. He lives in Washington State.



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