Donald Trump may be getting ready to add VA Secretary Shulkin to the list of casualties in his administration, but that didn't stop Representative Barbara Lee of California from being blunt with the secretary about veterans access to cannabis in a state where all you need is a recommendation to use the plant and not a prescription.
The Secretary is confused or purposely obsequious, hard to tell. But he may not be around long enough to go over the California questionnaires that allows Vets access to medicine that actually helps them with pain and PTSD without the dangerous opioids and combat cocktails that they are ‘prescribed.’
Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA):
"Okay, now, coming from California of course you know we have a variety of dispensaries which make marijuana available to patients and Veterans who use it for PTSD or chronic pain and it works."
"You've said that the VA can't recommend medical cannabis in accordance with state laws until the Federal Law changes but marijuana schedule 1 status does block formal prescriptions but it it does not block the ability of doctors to fill out questionnaire forms in those States so what's the problem? What's the Federal statute that blocks the VA from doing this and not letting physicians simply recommend cannabis to Veterans who need it and it's proven that it works."
Secretary Shulkin:
"Congressman, so would filling out a questionnaire, isn't that the step towards prescribing it, somebody has to write the prescription?"
No, did you not just hear what the gentlelady from California just said. It's not a prescription, so what is the statute that stops it from getting the medicine that actually helps?
Congresswoman Lee represents the city of Oakland where the social equity program required under Prop 64 is being held as an example for other programs across the country.
Lee has also introduced the Marijuana Justice Act HR 4815 companion to Sen. Cory Booker's S. 1689 that would would "remove marijuana from the US Controlled Substances Act, thereby ending the federal criminalization of cannabis; incentivize states to mitigate existing and ongoing racial disparities in state-level marijuana arrests; expunge federal convictions specific to marijuana possession; allow individuals currently serving time in federal prison for marijuana-related violations to petition the court for resentencing; and create a community reinvestment fund to invest in communities most impacted by the failed War on Drugs."
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