[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 199 (Thursday, December 14, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2365-E2366]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION ENDORSES MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA

                                 ______


                           HON. BARNEY FRANK

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 14, 1995

  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, recently I introduced 
legislation which would allow physicians to prescribe marijuana when in 
their judgment it is medically appropriate to do so. I first became a 
supporter of this legislation more than a decade ago, when it was 
introduced by our late colleague, the gentleman from Connecticut Mr. 
McKinney. I was recently advised of a resolution passed by The American 
Public Health Association which supports the concept embodied in the 
legislation I have introduced and I ask that this resolution be printed 
here.

                Access to Therapeutic Marijuana/Cannabis

       The American Public Health Association:
       Being aware that cannabis/marijuana has been used 
     medicinally for centuries and that cannabis products were 
     widely prescribed by physicians in the United States until 
     1937; and
       Being aware that ``marijuana'' prohibition began with the 
     Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 under false claims despite 
     disagreeing testimony from the AMA's representative; and
       Being further aware that the Controlled Substances Act of 
     1970 completely prohibited all medicinal use of marijuana by 
     placing it in the most restrictive category of Schedule I, 
     whereby drugs must meet three criteria for placement in this 
     category: 1) have no therapeutic value, 2) are not safe for 
     medical use, and 3) have a high abuse potential; and
       Being cognizant that the Drug Enforcement Administration's 
     own administrative law judge ruled in 1988 that marijuana 
     must be removed from Schedule I and made available for 
     physicians to prescribe; and
       Knowing that 36 states have passed legislation recognizing 
     marijuana's therapeutic value; and
       Also knowing that the only available access to legal 
     marijuana which was through the Food and Drug 
     Administration's Investigational New Drug Program has been 
     closed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services since 
     1991; and
       Understanding that while synthetic Tetrahydrocannibinol 
     (THC) is available in pill form, it is only one of 
     approximately 60 cannabinoids which may have medicinal value 
     individually or in some combination; and
       Understanding that marijuana has an extremely wide acute 
     margin of safety for use under medical supervision and cannot 
     cause lethal reactions; and
       Understanding that marijuana has been reported to be 
     effective in: a) reducing intraocular pressure in glaucoma; 
     b) reducing nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy; 
     c) stimulating the appetite for patients living with AIDS 
     (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) and suffering from the 
     wasting syndrome; d) controlling spasticity associated with 
     spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis; e) decreasing the 
     suffering from chronic pain; and f) controlling seizures 
     associated with seizure disorders; and
       Understanding that marijuana seems to work differently than 
     may conventional medications for the above problems, making 
     it a possible option for persons resistant to the 
     conventional medications; and
       Being concerned that desperate patients and their families 
     are choosing to break the law to obtain this medicine when 
     conventional medicines or treatments have not been effective 
     for them or are too toxic; and
       Realizing that this places ill persons at risk for criminal 
     charges and at risk for obtaining contaminated medicine 
     because of the lack of quality control; and
       Realizing that thousands of patients not helped by 
     conventional medications and treatments, may find relief from 
     their suffering with the use of marijuana if their primary 
     care providers were able to prescribe this medicine; and
       Concluding that cannabis/marijuana was wrongfully placed in 
     Schedule I of the Controlled Substances depriving patients of 
     its therapeutic potential.
       Recognizing the APHA adopted a resolution (7014) on 
     Marijuana and the Law which urged federal and state drugs 
     laws to exclude marijuana from classification as a narcotic 
     drug; and
       Concluding that greater harm is caused by the legal 
     consequences of its prohibition than possible risks of 
     medicinal use; therefore
       1. Encourages research of the therapeutic properties of 
     various cannabinoids and combinations of cannabinoids; and
     
[[Page E2366]]

       2. Encourages research on alternative methods of 
     administration to decrease the harmful effects related to 
     smoking; and
       3. Urges the Administration and Congress to move 
     expeditiously to make cannabis available as a legal medicine 
     where shown to be safe and effective and to immediately allow 
     access to therapeutic cannibis through the Investigational 
     New Drug Program.

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