Comments on: Appeals court on medical marijuana http://www.medrants.com/archives/1683 Internal medicine, American health care, and especially medical education Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:15:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: John Anderson http://www.medrants.com/archives/1683/comment-page-1#comment-2935 John Anderson Wed, 17 Dec 2003 12:25:20 +0000 http://medrants.com/archives/2003/12/17/appeals-court-on-medical-marijuana/#comment-2935 Sadly, the DOJ almost <i>has</i> to appeal this. Probably would anyway, with the current administration, but unfortunately Congress did not just class marijuana with heroin as an unecessary narcotic (because morphine was available) but singled it out as "having no medicinal value." The 9th says it does, which may go too far not to be challenged. But I expect DOJ to lose, despite the court's trying [questionably] trying to limit the damage by limiting the damage to interstate commerce, and that will backfire as opposed to asking Congress to move it to a regulated drug class. I doubt DOJ will be able to limit an appeal to the interstate commerce consideration, for which there are precedents in their favor, but will have to prove that it must be outlawed entirely as having no societally beneficial (medicinal) value: they will be in the position of outlawing willow bark for headaches to prevent research into the manufacture of aspirin. Sadly, the DOJ almost has to appeal this. Probably would anyway, with the current administration, but unfortunately Congress did not just class marijuana with heroin as an unecessary narcotic (because morphine was available) but singled it out as “having no medicinal value.” The 9th says it does, which may go too far not to be challenged.

But I expect DOJ to lose, despite the court’s trying [questionably] trying to limit the damage by limiting the damage to interstate commerce, and that will backfire as opposed to asking Congress to move it to a regulated drug class. I doubt DOJ will be able to limit an appeal to the interstate commerce consideration, for which there are precedents in their favor, but will have to prove that it must be outlawed entirely as having no societally beneficial (medicinal) value: they will be in the position of outlawing willow bark for headaches to prevent research into the manufacture of aspirin.

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