Marijuana will remain a schedule l controlled substance, which declares it has “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse,” the Drug Enforcement Agency said Thursday. This keeps the drug in the same category as heroin and cocaine.
The announcement is in response to two recent petitions asking the agency to reconsider this designation for the benefit of scientific research. The decision is based on a “scientific and medical evaluation” conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration at the request of the DEA.
“The DEA and the FDA continue to believe that scientifically valid and well-controlled clinical trials conducted under investigational new drug (IND) applications are the most appropriate way to conduct research on the medicinal uses of marijuana,” said a statement from the DEA.