WHO WE ARE

Our vision is a world where cannabis is universally recognized as a legal and viable medicine, free from stigma or discrimination. We aim to empower patients and their caregivers with the knowledge to make informed medical decisions and ensure that medical professionals can prescribe cannabis as a frontline or adjunct therapy. We strive for a future where patients enjoy equal rights and freedoms, have access to a wide range of personalized cannabis treatments, trust the safety and labeling of their products, and where medical cannabis is covered by insurance, ensuring that everyone can afford the care they need. 

We believe that health, wellness, and quality of life are basic human rights and that cannabis, a valuable medicine, has the potential to improve the lives of countless individuals. Policies governing medical cannabis should be created in collaboration with the communities most impacted by them. We hold that cannabis should be available as a frontline treatment option, free from the stigmas and penalties that unjustly limit access.

We reject the current federal policy on medical cannabis, viewing it as hypocritical, immoral, and a violation of fundamental human rights. Everyone has the right to produce, acquire, and use their own medicine, and consumers have a right to know what is in their cannabis products and how they are produced.

We value the contributions of all stakeholders in ensuring safe and equitable access to medical cannabis, and we assert that adult-use cannabis programs cannot replace the vital role of medical cannabis programs.

We believe that cannabis medicines should be covered by insurance and that all cannabis products sold for human consumption should meet strict standards for product safety and worker safety conditions. Furthermore, no one should be jailed for cannabis use or possession; those currently incarcerated should be released, all convictions expunged, and reparations made to the individuals and communities harmed by cannabis prohibition.

• Ensure safe and legal access to medical cannabis (therapy and research) throughout the United States.
• End stigma and discrimination associated with medical cannabis use and research.
• Ensure that cannabis is offered as a frontline treatment option.

• Develop guidelines & protocols to transition cannabis & cannabis-derived products (CCDP) into U.S. healthcare systems.
• Establish a national medical cannabis program in the United States.
• Expand the patient protections granted in the American Disability Act to include medical cannabis patients.

EDUCATE & EMPOWER: ASA provides medical cannabis, wellness, and healthcare stakeholders with resources to better understand the therapeutic benefits of cannabis and cannabinoids, how to navigate laws and regulations safely, and how to advocate for patients in all policy matters. Through ASA’s website, reports, trainings, and support programs, ASA informs stakeholders from the patient’s perspective and empowers everyone to engage with patient advocates for better policy outcomes.

HEALTHCARE INTEGRATION: ASA works to integrate cannabis therapeutics into healthcare systems, aiming for medical cannabis to be covered by insurance and readily available nationwide. This involves addressing knowledge gaps and fostering a regulatory environment that supports medical cannabis use in treatment plans.

ADVOCACY & POLICY: ASA advocates for policies that remove barriers to access to cannabis therapeutics at state, federal, and international levels. ASA promotes the recognition of cannabis as a legitimate medicine, including policies that inform the development of standardized cannabis-based products, ensure a safe and consistent supply, and support the autonomy of individuals to cultivate and produce their medicines.

PRODUCT SAFETY: ASA has created internationally recognized product safety standards for the cannabis and hemp supply chain. ASA educates all stakeholders on the importance of product safety protocols, provides policy guidance and tools for their adoption, and offers training for the cannabis/hemp workforce and regulators.

END DISCRIMINATION: ASA strives to eliminate criminal penalties as well as employment, housing, parental, and healthcare discrimination against anyone who is utilizing cannabis in treatment or to improve their quality of life.

See ASA Projects, Campaigns, and Programs for more information. 

Over the last two decades, ASA has utilized a variety of tactics, including legislation, education, litigation, research, grassroots empowerment, advocacy, and services for medical cannabis stakeholders to meet the immediate needs of patients and consumers while clearing the way for a national medical cannabis program. 

This journey includes passing state laws to remove criminal penalties and creating state-based distribution programs, creating internationally recognized product safety standards for the cannabis and hemp supply chain, participating in petitions and supporting efforts to reschedule cannabis in the US,  removing barriers for research, changing the scheduling of cannabis in drug treaties through the World Health Organization and the United Nations, and passing federal legislation to end federal interference in state medical cannabis programs and to protect medical professionals. 

Today, cannabis-based therapies provide relief to millions of Americans, often serving as a crucial alternative when conventional treatments have failed or as a safer option compared to pharmaceuticals. Patients and consumers across the United States can now access cannabis products in numerous forms from a variety of markets.

See ASA Accomplishments for more information.

State-level medical cannabis programs operate independently of the broader healthcare systems, creating significant financial, geographical, and legal barriers for individuals seeking access to these treatments.  The federal prohibition keeps cannabis therapeutics out of reach for Veterans, federal employees and contractors, and anyone requiring federal assistance.  For those patients and consumers that do have access, product safety regulations differ significantly from state to state, and now CBD, along with a host of other cannabinoid products, are being sold outside any regulatory authority without safety evaluations or testing for contaminants, harmful additives, and adulterants.

It is time for Congress to create a national medical cannabis program that will take politics out of cannabis therapeutics and broaden how the United States defines medicine.