After nine years of delaying the approval of marijuana for medical use, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) finally rejected the request to allow the use of marijuana on treating patients.  The heartbreaking decision comes following the advocates getting sued for unfair delays.  Back in 2002, Cannabis Rescheduling Coalition filed a petition to authorize the use of marijuana for medical purpose.

DEA claims that none of the evidence is valid since it does not comply with standard of FDA new drug application trials.  The DEA refers to a five-year old Department of Health and Human Services paper that claims marijuana cannot be use for medical purpose.  Although the paper cited some medical risk one could suffer from using marijuana, It failed to cite numerous studies about the good effect of marijuana people suffering from chronic diseases, except the fact that it does not comply with the FDA approval guidelines.

The DFA delays the trials from occurring, in contrast to what administrative law judge recommends.  The only fact that ever existed, used by the U.S. researchers for denying marijuana is the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which states that it will never pursue the use of marijuana as an alternative medicine.

California NORML director Dale Gieringer, the guy who helped in rescheduling the petition say the government will never listen to anybody.  The DEA is free to reject any evidence to them also the experience of several physicians and users, who uses marijuana and has seen the potential of the drug for helping people to deal with chronic cases.  DEA does this to protect its bureaucratic position.  The recent government response leaves people, questioning the competence of the government in protecting their people from medial diseases.

Gieringer noted that it is true that there are a lot of FDA approved-drugs out in the market today, but the price is too high that most individual cannot buy the drug. Instead of buying high priced-drugs, people will just buy food.  There are surveys that can prove that marijuana can indeed be used as an alternative drug, which may reduce the use of costly drugs.  DEA deliberately disregarding the fact presented to them, just to protect the agency.

As of this writing, advocates of the petition are planning on challenging the decision made by DEA.  Medical-marijuana advocates believe in the bill by Representative Barney Frank (D-MA), the State’s Medical Marijuana Protection Act of 2011(HR 1983) that might let most states use it for medical treatment.