Download Appendix 3: National Health Organizations That Oppose “Medical

Appendix 3:
National Health Organizations That Oppose
“Medical” Marijuana
American Medical Association (AMA) reaffirmed their stance opposing the legalization of
marijuana at their 2013 Interim Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates stating: “Our AMA
believes that (1) cannabis is a dangerous drug and as such is a public health concern; (2) sale
of cannabis should not be legalized.” The report called for efforts to “discourage cannabis use,
especially by persons vulnerable to the drug’s effects and in high-risk situations…support the
determination of the consequences of long-term cannabis use through concentrated research,
especially among youth and adolescents… support the modification of state and federal laws to
emphasize public health based strategies to address and reduce cannabis use.” The full report
may be accessed here. http://www.ama-assn.org/assets/meeting/2013i/i13-refcommk-annotated.pdf
American Glaucoma Society (AGS) states that marijuana’s mood altering side effects and
short duration of action, coupled with a lack of evidence that its use alters the course of
glaucoma, preclude recommending this drug in any form for the treatment of glaucoma at the
present time. Click here to view the organization’s full position statement.
http://www.americanglaucomasociety.net/patients/position_statements/marijuana_glaucoma
National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) has stated that the use of marijuana is not
recommended for management of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, and is not part
of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines of Oncology in Antiemesis. Click here to view the
organization’s journal article on this issue. http://www.jnccn.org/content/10/4/487.abstract
National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) states that there are serious uncertainties about
the benefits of marijuana relative to its side effects and that studies completed thus far have not
provided convincing evidence that marijuana or its derivatives provide substantiated benefits for
symptoms of MS. Click here to view the organization’s full position statement.
http://www.nationalmssociety.org/Treating-MS/Complementary-Alternative-Medicines/Marijuana
Narcotics Enforcement Officers Association (NEOA) has gathered extensive material on the
subject of “medical” marijuana and found that the overwhelming majority of the scientific
evidence to date has shown that marijuana is a dangerous drug, that no recognized medical
authority recommends the use of crude marijuana as medicine, and that all recognized medical
groups oppose the "medicalization" of marijuana. Click here to view the organization’s full
position statement. http://neoa.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=17&Itemid=21
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) has stated its
concern about the negative impact of “medical” marijuana on youth. Adolescents are especially
vulnerable to the many adverse developmental, cognitive, medical, psychiatric, and addictive
effects of marijuana. Of particular concern to our field, adolescent marijuana users are more
likely than adult users to develop marijuana dependence, and their heavy use is associated with
increased incidence and worsened course of psychotic, mood, and anxiety disorders.
Furthermore, marijuana's deleterious effects on cognition and brain development during
adolescence may have lasting implications. Click here to view the organization’s full position
statement.
http://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Policy_Statements/2012/AACAP_Medical_Marijuana_Policy_Statement.aspx
The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) states that that no scientific evidence has
been found that demonstrates increased benefits and/or diminished risks of marijuana use to
treat glaucoma compared with the wide variety of pharmaceutical agents now available. Click
here to view the organization’s full position statement. http://one.aao.org/complimentary-therapyassessment/marijuana-in-treatment-of-glaucoma-cta--may-2003
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) opposes the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana
is the illicit substance most commonly abused by adolescents. Any change in the legal status of
marijuana, even if limited to adults, could affect the prevalence of use among adolescents. Click
here to view the organization’s full position statement.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/113/6/1825.full.pdf
The American Cancer Society (ACS) states that better and more effective treatments are
needed to overcome the side effects of cancer and its treatment. The ACS does not advocate
the use of inhaled marijuana or the legalization of marijuana. The ACS also states that for most
symptoms, there are more effective drugs already on the market. Click here to view the
organization’s full position statement.
http://documents.cancer.org/acs/groups/cid/documents/webcontent/001976-pdf.pdf
The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) asserts that cannabis, cannabis-based
products, and cannabis delivery devices should be subject to the same standards that are
applicable to other prescription medications and medical devices and that these products should
not be distributed or otherwise provided to patients unless and until such products or devices
have received marketing approval from the Food and Drug Administration. ASAM rejects
smoking as a means of drug delivery since it is not safe. Click here to view the organization’s
full position statement. http://www.asam.org/advocacy/find-a-policy-statement/view-policy-statement/publicpolicy-statements/2012/07/30/state-level-proposals-to-legalize-marijuana