Medicinal Cannabis: States’ Battle over Legality

Bob Marley could have been glad in the US if he still lives right nowadays as laws have turning more or less lax about the using up and propagation of cannabis. Marley and his religion -- Rastafarian -- permit the consumption of cannabis for spiritual and ritualistic purposes. The only problem he might get is the ordinance that this type of drug can solely be practiced for medical purposes. But no matter of this, just like the usual he can still get past of the white medical scrubs uniforms prerequisite and still get a dosage of one of the most controversial drug in the state. That's all if he's still living.

Marijuana, also known as cannabis, ganja, hemp and many other nomenclatures comes from a species of plant that incorporates a drug and is viewed in most nations as illegal like cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, etc.. Its history of usage for the intervention of respective illnesses can be traced back to 2,737 B.C. Most unremarkably used as analgesic or for curative of nausea. But despite the claims on the medical usage of marijuana, this drug is even controversial and is still in contravention by many nations, practitioners, pharmacists and has the disapproval of anti-drug communities and organization.

In the US alone, the federal government criminalized the utilization of marijuana in whatever aim and the decision whether to let this type of drug as a medical intercession has been established to the states. Legislations on the use of cannabis are different allotting to the various states and indicate specifics on the effectuation of the drug as well as the propagation of the plant. Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington are the only states out of the 50 that have their own opinion about the function of cannabis for medical use. Another 17 states have pending statute laws on the use of marijuana and an additional 2 more have petitions to have at least one. The 17 states include Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland (allows a medical-use defense in court), Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Virginia while South Dakota and Florida are the 2 states that has drives for legalization.

The principal proposal in most of the legislation that has existed on the 14 states incorporate some rigid rules about the number of dosage and specific illness that it the dose can interpose. All these 14 states only offer the cannabis as medicine only on prescription. So basically, cannabis can not be used alone for refreshment.

Despite claims about a number of diseases that medical cannabis can cure, there are no specific activities about this from the government. Even the practitioners in lab coats are not so much vigorous of promoting loosening down the strict policies that affects this drug.

In the coming years however, advocators are hoping that the ruling will somehow be loosen. But it is beneficial that the loosening should only perform the medical part of the story and not to circulate it for recreational consumption.