Medical marijuana: a valuable treatment

 

For many years, the use of marijuana has been outlawed in the United States, despite numerous studies that have shown that the plant has benefits in treating certain diseases, such as cancer and glaucoma. Additionally, the drug is less addictive and has fewer long-term side effects from use than alcohol and tobacco, products that are currently legal for adult use in the United States. Because of these events, the movement to legalize marijuana in the United States has gained momentum over the past two decades, and significant strides have been made in the past ten years.

The use of marijuana for medical reasons is currently legal in 11 states, including California. These states have not legalized the use of marijuana for recreational purposes, but only for those suffering from ailments that have been shown to improve with cannabis treatments. These patients can now legally obtain the drug. Before these laws were passed, many chronically or terminally ill patients had to engage in criminal behavior in order to obtain a product that would help alleviate many unpleasant daily symptoms, particularly nausea and vomiting. In some cases, these patients have even been prosecuted for purchasing cannabis.

Legalizing marijuana for medical purposes is seen by many as a step in the right direction, especially for a country that has an overly repressive attitude towards drugs. Although marijuana is legal in many countries around the world, and tax dollars earned from the legal purchase and sale of marijuana are used to stimulate the economy, American politicians have steadfastly refused to jump on that bandwagon. This may be because many fear crime rates will rise if the drug is more accessible, or the fact that it is often seen as a gateway drug that attracts younger users into the world of harsher drugs. Either way, buying and selling marijuana remains a crime punishable by proposition 207 yes.

However, for now, legalizing medical marijuana appears to be a decision many states can live with. In addition to the recognized medical benefits that cannabis offers, marijuana obtained from a dispensary through a prescription brings additional revenue to the state. The drug available at the dispensary is generally of higher quality and produced locally, providing an overall benefit to the state's economy. It appears to be only a matter of time before medical marijuana legalization goes national, perhaps opening the door for further decriminalization of the drug at a future point.