The Department of Justice is easing medical marijuana restrictions by reclassifying the substance as less dangerous.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signed an order on April 23 that moves medical marijuana products approved by the Food and Drug Administration or with a state license from Schedule I, the highest level of regulation, to the less strict Schedule III.
“This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information,” Blanche said in a statement.
Here’s more information on the reclassification and what it means for Kentucky.
Marijuana has been considered a Schedule I drug since the Controlled Substances Act was signed in 1970, falling into the same category as substances like heroin, MDMA or ecstasy.
While reclassification to a Schedule III drug does not make cannabis federally legal, it puts the substance at the same level as Tylenol with codeine, ketamine or testosterone. The change also makes it easier for the industry to operate and for research to be conducted.
The DOJ is expediting the hearing process to more broadly reclassify marijuana under federal law, following through on President Donald Trump’s Dec. 18 executive action to finalize a reclassification push begun under President Joe Biden.
The Drug Enforcement Administration will hold the administrative hearing on June 29.
The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which oversees the state’s medical marijuana program, has not yet responded to requests for comment.
The order, however, creates an expedited system for state-licensed medical marijuana producers and distributors to register with the DEA. It also protects researchers who obtain marijuana products for their work.
Medical marijuana was signed into law by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear in March 2023, with the program launching on Jan. 1, 2025.
Prior to the official legislation creating a pathway for operation in Kentucky, Beshear signed an executive order in November 2022 that legalized the possession and use of medical marijuana by certain eligible individuals in the state, so long as it was purchased legally outside Kentucky and amounts to less than eight ounces, the Courier Journal previously reported.
No. Recreational marijuana remains illegal in the commonwealth.
Contributing: Zac Anderson. Reach Marina Johnson at Marina.Johnson@courier-journal.com.