New medical studies suggest that marijuana might be a more effective method for treating chronic pain than prescription drugs, potentially helping to curtail the nation's opioid epidemic. But marijuana's classification as a Schedule I drug under federal law is a roadblock to further research.
From The Atlantic:
James Feeney, a surgeon in Connecticut, heard it from his patients. A few actually turned down his prescription for oxycodone, the popular opioid painkiller that has also gained notoriety with the opioid epidemic. His patients, Feeney recalls, would say, “Listen, don't give me any of that oxycodone garbage. … I'm just going to smoke weed.”
“And you know what?” says Feeney. “Every single one of those patients doesn't have a lot of pain, and they do pretty well.”
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