As the Biden administration moves to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, scientists say the change will lift some of the restrictions on studying the drug.
But the change won’t lift all restrictions, they say, neither will it decrease potential risks of the drug or help users better understand what those risks are.
Marijuana is currently classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, which is defined as a substance with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The Biden administration proposed this week to classify cannabis as a Schedule III controlled substance, a category that acknowledges it has some medical benefits.
The current Schedule I status imposes many regulations and restrictions on scientists’ ability to study weed, even as state laws have made it increasingly available to the public.
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“Cannabis as a Schedule I substance is associated with a number of very, very restrictive regulations,” says neuroscientist Staci Gruber at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School. “You have very stringent requirements, for example, for storage and security and reporting all of these things.”
These requirements are set by the Food and Drug Administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Institutional Review Board and local authorities, she says. Scientists interested in studying the drug also have to register with the DEA and get a state and federal license to conduct research on the drug.
“It’s a burdensome process and it is certainly a process that has prevented a number of young and rather invested researchers from pursuing [this kind of work],” says Gruber.
Reclassifying the drug as Schedule III puts it in the same category as ketamine and Tylenol with codeine. Substances in this category have accepted medical use in the United States, have less potential for abuse than in higher categories and abuse could lead to low to moderate levels of dependence on the drug.
This reclassification is “a very, very big paradigm shift,” says Gruber. “I think that has a big trickle down effect in terms of the perspectives and the attitudes with regard to the actual sort of differences between studying Schedule III versus Schedule I substances.”
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Gruber welcomes the change, particularly for what it will mean for younger colleagues. “For researchers who are looking to get into the game, it will be easier. You don’t have to have a Schedule I license,” she says. “That’s a big deal.”
The rescheduling of cannabis will also “translate to more research on the benefits and risks of cannabis for the treatment of medical conditions,” writes Dr. Andrew Monte in an email. He is associate director of Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Safety and an emergency physician and toxicologist at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
“This will also help improve the quality of the research since more researchers will be able to contribute,” he adds.
Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Imag
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CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Imag
Senate Democrats hold a press conference on Wednesday pitching new, less strict marijuana laws. From left are Senators Cory Booker of N.J., Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., and Ron Wyden of Oregon.
But the change in classification won’t significantly expand the number of sources for the drug for researchers, says Gruber. For 50 years, researchers were allowed to use cannabis from only one source – a facility at the University of Mississippi. Then, in 2021, the DEA started to add a few more companies to that listof approved sources for medical and scientific research.
While she expects more sources to be added in time, she and many of the researchers she knows have yet to benefit from the recently added sources, as most have limited products available.
“And what we haven’t seen is any ability for researchers –cannabis researchers, clinical researchers – to have the ability to study products that our patients and our recreational consumers or adult consumers are actually using,” she adds. “That remains impossible.”
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There is very little known information about what is in cannabis products on the market today. Some studies show that the level of THC, the main intoxicant in marijuana, being sold to consumers today is significantly higher than what was available decades ago, and high THC levels are known to pose more health risks.
And Monte cautions that the reclassification itself doesn’t mean that cannabis has no health risks. Monte and his colleagues have been documentingsome of those risks in Colorado by studying people who show up in the emergency room after consuming cannabis. Intoxication and cyclical vomiting (cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome) and alarming psychiatric symptoms such as psychosis are among the top problems bringing some marijuana users to the hospital.
Research on cannabis has been lacking surveillance of these kinds of impacts for decades, he says. And rescheduling the drug will not fill that “gaping hole in risk surveillance,” he writes.
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The entire police department of a small South Carolina town resigned en masse, leaving the area without its own dedicated police force.
Chief Bob Hale of the McColl Police Department announced his resignation on November 21 in a social media post, citing a “hostile work environment perpetuated by a specific Councilman.”
“For months, I have endured unwarranted and malicious behavior aimed at undermining my integrity and leadership,” Hale wrote. “These actions have not only affected me personally but have also created a toxic atmosphere that has hindered the department’s ability to function effectively.”
The chief also said his department’s resources had been severely cut. The four officers under his command quickly resigned as well.
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“At the end of the day, I have a family. And when my job is constantly getting threatened and certain things are getting said I’m not going to stay somewhere and tolerate that,” former McColl investigator Courtney Bulusan told WRAL.
“I’m not going to stay where I’m tolerated,” Bulusan said. “I’m going to go where I’m celebrated.”
As the town seeks new officers, the Marlboro County Sheriff’s Office will fill in for the department police force, according to South Carolina Public Radio.
The town has gone through six chiefs in the past four years. Hale’s tenure in the position lasted little over a year.
“I feel unsafe. Very unsafe,” resident Lisa Bowen told local outlet WPDE. “Because anytime anybody could do anything.”
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“They jump ship back and forth all the time,” Mayor George Garner told the Post and Courier newspaper. “This is nothing new.”
The paper reported that the councilman in question denied he had harassed any of the officers and told the paper the allegations were “hearsay.”
Such mass resignations, while uncommon, are not unprecedented.
The entire police force of Geary, Oklahoma, resigned earlier this month, Fox News reports.
UCLA’s win over No. 1 ranked South Carolina wasn’t a fluke, and Bruins center Lauren Betts says if you haven’t been paying attention, now would be the time to.
Let’s say the thing. It was not close on Sunday. From the opening tip to the final buzzer, UCLA commanded the floor and had an answer for everything the Gamecocks tried to do. The Bruins beat South Carolina on the boards (41-34), held four starters to under five points, and *checks notes* not a single starter went to the free-throw line. UGLY STUFF.
Furthermore, five UCLA players scored in double figures, including Londynn Jones, who was sensational from the line with five 3-pointers, and star center Lauren Betts, who had 11 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and four blocks. WHEW. Postgame, Betts raved about her team and how proud she was, but she also sent a direct warning to college basketball. “If you’ve been sleeping on UCLA,” Betts said. “You need to stop right now.”
Clemson football looks to win its second straight Palmetto Bowl.
The No. 12 Tigers (9-2) faces in-state rival No. 14 South Carolina (8-3) on Saturday (noon ET, ESPN) at Memorial Stadium. This will be the 121st meeting between these two programs and one of the highest-ranked rivalry games in Week 14.
There are still tickets available for Clemson’s last game in Death Valley in the regular season. Here are the best prices for remaining seats.
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See Clemson ticket prices for every game this season
Clemson tickets vs South Carolina
Ticket prices for Clemson’s final home game against South Carolina on Saturday start at $175 on StubHub and at $167 on VividSeats. Prices in the lower bowl range from $224 to over $1000 on both sites.
To see a full list of ticket prices, visit StubHub or VividSeats.
MORE: Why Clemson showcases patriotism before football games at Memorial Stadium
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Clemson football schedule 2024
Aug. 31: Georgia 34, Clemson 3
Sept. 7: Clemson 66, Appalachian State 20
Sept. 21: Clemson 59, NC State 35
Sept. 28: Clemson 40, Stanford 14
Oct. 5: Clemson 29, Florida State 13
Oct. 12: Clemson 49, Wake Forest 14
Oct. 19: Clemson 48, Virginia 31
Nov. 2: Louisville 33, Clemson 21
Nov. 9: Clemson 24, Virginia Tech 14
Nov. 16: Clemson 24, Pitt 20
Nov. 23: Clemson 51, The Citadel 14
Nov. 30: vs. No. 14 South Carolina, noon ET (ESPN)
South Carolina football 2024 schedule
Aug. 31: South Carolina 23, Old Dominion 19
Sept. 7: South Carolina 31, Kentucky 6
Sept. 14: LSU 36, South Carolina 33
Sept. 21: South Carolina 50, Akron 7
Oct. 5: Ole Miss 27, South Carolina 3
Oct. 12: Alabama 27, South Carolina 25
Oct. 19: South Carolina 35, Oklahoma 9
Nov. 2: South Carolina 44, Texas A&M 20
Nov. 9: South Carolina 28, Vanderbilt 7
Nov. 16: South Carolina 34, Missouri 30
Nov. 23: South Carolina 56, Wofford 12
Nov. 30: at No. 12 Clemson, noon ET (ESPN)
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