Politics is seemingly everywhere, including in the management of chronic pain.
Latest Developments
The use of medical marijuana, although legal in 10 states, has now been relegated to the control of the federal government. This was determined in a 6-3 vote by the Supreme Court this week.
The judges responsible for the ruling emphasize that the decision was not over whether marijuana is an effective pain reliever. Rather they indicated the issue was concerning the economics of drug trafficking between states.1
Background
Since the late 1990s, some states have legalized the use of marijuana by medical patients.
States who have legalized marijuana "remove state-level criminal penalties on the use, possession and cultivation of marijuana"3 by patients who can somehow (varies by state) show that its use will help their condition. Many of these states have built up large networks of co-ops, clubs and 'compassionate physicians' which support medical marijuana patients. California is the notable leader for support networks for medical marijuana patients.
