Evidence demonstrates, and the general public believes, cannabis should be legal for adult use. President Biden has repeatedly promised to decriminalize cannabis, but even before the President’s proclamation, the process of evaluating the medicinal qualities of drugs has proved inadequate. We support our colleagues across the movement who urge for Congress to deschedule cannabis entirely.
We hope that this inquiry into cannabis’ status will initiate a more holistic, multi-agency analysis that considers the harms of prohibition as it develops solutions to our current inadequate system of drug control. This analysis will undoubtedly point toward the need to evaluate other drugs and policies through a more comprehensive and evidence-based lens.