Opinion: States are scrambling to regulate cannabis. Federal regulations would ensure safe access.
By Shelby Huffaker for The San Diego Union Tribune
In the United States, we are fortunate to have a robust regulatory system for ensuring medications — particularly those intended for consumption by individuals with pre-existing medical conditions — are held to the highest safety standards. Unfortunately, with cannabis classified as a Schedule I substance, there is no way to regulate it for the benefit of patients and non-medical consumers alike.
States are left to scramble for ways to regulate cannabis in the absence of any clear or consistent guidance.
To highlight the problems raised by our patchwork approach to cannabis regulation, a recent analysis conducted by the national nonprofit group Americans for Safe Access revealed that states vary dramatically in their approaches to regulating cannabis product quality, if they have an approach at all.
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