Prepared February 5, 2019
Hearings, Briefings, Meetings
September 19 - Dr. Kathy Etz, NIDA Director of Native American Programs, participated in a meeting with Congressman David McKinley at West Virginia University to discuss ways in which the Appalachian region could further strengthen its biomedical research capabilities.
Legislation of Interest
Mid-term elections took place on November 6, 2018. Ninety-four new Members of Congress were elected. The outgoing 115th Congress passed the "Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018," known colloquially as the "2018 Farm Bill," which was subsequently signed into law by the President. Relevant to NIDA, the bill removes hemp (defined as the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant with a THC concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis) from the Controlled Substances Act, meaning that it will no longer be illegal under federal law. The bill also removes residual THC in hemp from Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act. The 116th Congress commenced on January 3. The following bills relevant to marijuana have been introduced:
- H.R. 127 Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States Act of 2019
- H.R. 171 Legitimate Use of Medicinal Marihuana Act
- H.R. 420 Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act
- H.R. 493 Sensible Enforcement of Cannabis Act of 2019
- H.R. 601 Medical Cannabis Research Act of 2019
- H.R. 712 To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a clinical trial of the effects of Cannabis on certain health outcomes of adults with chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder, and for other purposes
- H.R. 747 To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct and support research on the efficacy and safety of medicinal cannabis, and for other purposes
- S. 179 VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act of 2019