{"id":6927,"date":"2026-04-14T19:20:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T19:20:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/?p=6927"},"modified":"2026-04-14T19:20:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T19:20:51","slug":"president-donald-trumps-call-to-reclassify-medical-marijuana-whats-changed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/?p=6927","title":{"rendered":"President Donald Trump\u2019s Call to Reclassify Medical Marijuana, What\u2019s Changed?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Max Bocken<\/em><\/p>\n

Associate Editor<\/em><\/p>\n

Loyola University Chicago School of Law, JD 2027<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Last December, President Donald Trump issued an executive order<\/a> calling for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to expedite the reclassification of marijuana to a Schedule III drug. Currently, marijuana<\/a> is listed as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970<\/a> (CSA), making it federally illegal to sell, distribute, or possess. This classification<\/a>significantly limits the ability to undertake scientific and medical research on marijuana and the extent to which medical professionals and individuals can make informed decisions concerning its use. Regardless of this prohibition, 40 states and the District of Columbia<\/a> have state or locally sanctioned medical marijuana, and a majority of the American public (64%<\/a>) believes that marijuana should be legalized. The impediment of necessary research, the public support for legalizing the substance, and the potential economic and medical benefits have led President Trump\u2019s call<\/a> to reclassify it. Reclassification<\/a> will likely support the marijuana industry while simultaneously benefiting American health care.<\/p>\n

Marijuana\u2019s legal status in the United States<\/strong><\/p>\n

The current regulatory landscape revolving medical marijuana is complex. In 1970, the CSA<\/a> was passed to provide a uniform framework for regulating substances that are deemed to pose a risk of abuse and dependence. The CSA went on to classify<\/a> drugs into five different schedules, or classifications, from Schedule I to Schedule V, with classifications based on the substance\u2019s medical use and potential for abuse. A drug classified<\/a> as a Schedule I substance is seen as having no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse, while a drug classified as a Schedule V substance is seen as having the lowest potential for abuse and an accepted medical use. Additionally, the CSA gave the United States Attorney General<\/a>, the head of the DOJ, the ability to schedule, deschedule, and move substances between schedules. Since its enactment, the DOJ has now delegated their power to reschedule substances to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a component of the DOJ.<\/p>\n

Disregarding the federal legal status of marijuana, the majority of states have now legalized the use of medical marijuana, recreational marijuana, or both. However, the United States Constitution\u2019s Supremacy Clause<\/a>, which states the general principle that federal law takes precedence over conflicting state law, prevents states from legalizing marijuana. Instead, for over a decade, \u00a0Congress has passed legislation barring the DOJ<\/a>, and subsequently the DEA, from using taxpayer funds to prevent states from implementing their own laws concerning the distribution, possession, or use of medical marijuana. This legislation does not apply to recreational marijuana<\/a>, but the DOJ has also chosen not to enforce federal law prohibiting its distribution, possession, or use.<\/p>\n

The discussion of reclassifying marijuana began in 2023 when the Department of Health and Human Services<\/a> (HHS) determined that marijuana should be rescheduled to a Schedule III drug. The HHS based its conclusion on a finding that there was an acceptable medical use<\/a> for marijuana, as evidenced by at least 30,000 licensed healthcare practitioners across roughly 40 states authorized to prescribe, and recommending, medical marijuana for over 15 medical conditions. The Food and Drug Administration<\/a> (FDA) has joined this conclusion, finding credible scientific evidence that marijuana can help treat different ailments such as pain, anorexia related to medical conditions, and the adverse effects of chemotherapy.<\/p>\n

Reclassification is likely to benefit American\u2019s<\/strong><\/p>\n

The current classification of marijuana is detrimental to the marijuana industry. It disincentivizes financial instructions<\/a>from handling income or otherwise engaging in financial dealings with marijuana businesses, subjecting those who do to potential violations of federal anti-money laundering laws. As a result, fewer than 10%<\/a> of financial institutions provide services to state-licensed marijuana businesses across the nation. The classification also prevents marijuana businesses from taking certain federal income tax deductions<\/a> usually allowed by other businesses, specifically business expense deductions, which can account for a massive discrepancy in a business\u2019s federal income tax liability. Lastly, it limits the reliability and safety<\/a> of the products for sale by limiting oversight of the manufacturers and the correct dosage representation of the goods at the time of sale.<\/p>\n

As they currently stand, state marijuana laws and their respective industries would still not be in compliance<\/a> with federal controlled substance laws if the drug were to be reclassified. However, reclassifying the drug to a Schedule III substance could provide serious benefits to marijuana businesses and American consumers. It would ease the high threshold currently required to research<\/a> the drug and its effects. This would allow doctors<\/a> to be more informed when prescribing the drug and protect patients, especially at-risk populations such as young adults. Furthermore, the reclassification would require marijuana to be dispensed by prescription<\/a>, and thus, subject the marijuana products to the rigorous approval requirements of the FDA. Individuals would need to obtain valid prescriptions<\/a> from medical providers, which are also subject to greater legal requirements than those currently established in existing states. With regards to marijuana businesses,<\/a> the reclassification would improve their access to financial services, and thus their security, as well as increase their profitability through the allowance of deductions typically allowed by other businesses. We may even see traditional pharmaceutical companies<\/a> develop marijuana-based medications, increasing consumers\u2019 options for treatment and bolstering a competitive marketplace. While the DEA is still pondering whether to reclassify marijuana or not, if reclassified as a Schedule III drug it is almost certainly going to increase the quality of American health care and the quality and profitability of the marijuana industry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last December, President Donald Trump issued an executive order calling for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to expedite the reclassification of marijuana to a Schedule III drug. Currently, marijuana is listed as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (CSA), making it federally illegal to sell, distribute, or possess. This classificationsignificantly limits the ability to undertake scientific and medical research on marijuana and the extent to which medical professionals and individuals can make informed decisions concerning its use. Regardless of this prohibition, 40 states and the District of Columbia have state or locally sanctioned medical marijuana, and a majority of the American public (64%) believes that marijuana should be legalized. The impediment of necessary research, the public support for legalizing the substance, and the potential economic and medical benefits have led President Trump\u2019s call to reclassify it. Reclassification will likely support the marijuana industry while simultaneously benefiting American health care.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":183,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,14],"tags":[776,1283],"class_list":["post-6927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dea","category-department-of-justice","tag-executive-orders","tag-marijuana"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/183"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6927"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6927\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6928,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6927\/revisions\/6928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/compliance\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}