Persuasive Essay On Medical Marijuana

Words: 997
Pages: 4

When the subject of marijuana comes up the first thing people associate with it is getting “high.” Even though there are studies and personnel experience that provide proof that medical marijuana has help relieve a multitude of symptoms there are those who do not see any medical use for marijuana. Opiates are the main drugs prescribed for pain and these drugs are becoming more abused than illegal drugs. Medical marijuana can help people who suffer from chronic pain and cancer and AIDS/HIV treatments. This drug could be used in addition to or as an alternative for addictive opiates. Judge Gustin L. Reichbach served as a New York State judge for twenty years when he was diagnosed with Stage 3 pancreatic cancer at the age of 62. His quest for a way to relieve his symptoms would lead to the use of …show more content…
In the DEA’s view, smoking marijuana does not have any medical value. It is illegal under federal law and is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (78). The FDA has decided not to approve smoked marijuana stating that there is not any evidence to support medical use and that smoking marijuana is harmful to the body. The DEA and FDA are not alone in their opposition to medical marijuana the American Medical Association, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, and the American Cancer Society, just to name a few agree, that smoked marijuana has no medical benefits and in fact is harmful to people’s health. The stance is that other drugs approved by the FDA are safer and as effective plus there is no way to control the quality, safety, and dosage of marijuana (80-85). The US Drug Enforcement Administration states that “[s]cience, not popular vote, should determine what medicine is (85).” How can science prove if marijuana is effective when it is still illegal to test? The government needs to allow marijuana research to settle to debate once and for