The American College of Physicians

The report’s introduction states: “Marijuana has been smoked for its medicinal properties for centuries. Preclinical, clinical, and anecdotal reports suggest numerous potential medical uses for marijuana. Although the indications for some conditions have been well documented, less information is available about other potential medical uses. Additional research is needed to further clarify the therapeutic value of cannabinoids and determine optimal routes of administration. Unfortunately, research expansion has been hindered by a complicated federal approval process, limited availability of research-grade marijuana, and the debate over legalization. ACP believes the science on medical marijuana should not be obscured or hindered by the debate surrounding the legalization of marijuana for general use.”

Bruce Mirkin, of the Marijuana Policy Project, called Thursday’s announcement a seismic shift in the medical marijuana debate. The college of physicians, he told Times reporter Eric Bailey, “pulverized the government’s two favorite myths about medical marijuana—that it’s not supported by the medical community and that science hasn’t shown marijuana to have medical value.”

There was no immediate response from the presidential candidates. Hillary Clinton, Ron Paul and Barack Obama have spoken in favor of medical marijuana, while John McCain and Mike Huckabee say they would neither loosen nor tighten federal marijuana laws. The Bush administration has rebuffed efforts by Congress, the courts and law enforcement organizations to legitimize marijuana for prescription use.

Officials at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy told the Times calls for marijuana legalization were misguided. “What this would do is drag us back to 14th century medicine,” said Bertha Madras, the agency’s deputy director for demand reduction. The Food and Drug Administration has refused to classify leafy cannabis as a medical drug, although it has approved two synthetic marijuana derivatives manufactured by pharmaceutical companies and is testing a marijuana spray.