Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass, wrote in a StAT op-ed state’s choices to legalize marijuana.
“One thing is clear to me: Our federal policy on marijuana is badly broken, benefiting neither the elderly man suffering from cancer whom marijuana may help nor the young woman prone to substance use disorder whom it may harm,” Kennedy wrote. “The patchwork of inconsistent state laws compounds the dysfunction.”
“Given the FDA’s recent approval of prescriptions derived from marijuana, other countries’ recognition of its legitimate medicinal uses, and lower rates of addiction than alcohol or nicotine, this classification is hard to justify,” Kennedy continued.
“Banks fear a crackdown on transactions with marijuana suppliers and dispensaries because they are still illegal under federal law, leaving the state-law-abiding businesses no choice but to operate with cash-only transactions,” Kennedy also said.
According to the Rep., the federal government currently can’t place guardrails for the use of marijuana such as the way it does for alcohol and tobacco.
