Federal Health Officials Recommend Reclassification of Marijuana

Move from Schedule I to Schedule III Indicates Lower Abuse Potential and Acknowledges Medical Benefits

Federal health officials have recommended that marijuana be reclassified from a Schedule I to a Schedule III substance, indicating a lower potential for abuse and possible medical benefits.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has publicly acknowledged marijuana's medical use for the first time.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse support the reclassification, which would place marijuana in the same category as prescription drugs like ketamine and testosterone.
The reclassification could open up more avenues for research, allow cannabis businesses to bank more freely and openly, and have firms no longer subject to a 40-year-old tax code that disallows credits and deductions from income generated by sales of Schedule I and II substances.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will have the final authority to make any changes to marijuana’s scheduling, and it will go through a rulemaking process that includes a period for the public to provide comments before any scheduling action is finalized.