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Writer's pictureChristina Shifflett
Jun 74 min read

Re-scheduling cannabis


Hello fellow cannabis enthusiasts! Today I wanted to talk about the recent announcement that the DEA would potentially be re-scheduling cannabis from its current Schedule I status to a Schedule III status drug. If you’ve followed the cannabis industry news, you know that this is an incredibly exciting possibility! This could go a long way towards validating cannabis as a medicine, which can intern reduce the stigma, increase education/research and potentially (in the long run) reduce the cost burden for patients as insurance companies begin to cover cannabis medicine. But for those who may know that the recommendation to re- or de-schedule cannabis has been made several times since cannabis has been in Schedule I status. There might be some hesitancy and getting excited about the most recent recommendation. If you are new to cannabis and are wondering what this whole deal really means, continue reading for more information.

Cannabis has been listed as a schedule run drug since it was made illegal with the Marijuana Tax act in 1937. A Schedule I compound/drug is defined to be “drugs, substances, or chemicals defined with no current accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” The examples that are provided with this definition are drugs like “heroin, LSD, ecstasy, methaqualone and peyote.” The many different research articles that have been published in recent history that show/highlight the real medical benefit that cannabis provides has more than shown that cannabis does not truly belong in this in this category at all. For the purposes of this article, we are only going to look at the research showing cannabis’ multiple medical uses and not the mountain of evidence that details how cannabis being put in a Schedule I status was entirely racially motivated.


The definition for Schedule III is as follows: “drugs, substances or chemicals defined as drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence. Schedule III drug abuse potential is less than Schedule I and II drugs, but more than Schedule IV.” The drug examples provided with this definition include “Tylenol with codeine, ketamine, anabolic steroids, and testosterone.” From the plants perspective, cannabis might fit a bit better here, but it is hardly the best fit for cannabis in my opinion. There has been research done showing that cannabis has a very low addiction possibility. There is however, evidence that shows cannabis can exacerbate latent or current mental health disorders that can lead to addiction and behaviors, not specific to cannabis (perhaps that is splitting hairs though). Listing cannabis among medicines, like codeine, ketamine, steroids, and testosterone doesn’t really fit either. Taking too much codeine can lead to respiratory depression and death; too much ketamine can lead to toxicity which can cause mental health and cardiac issues; taking too many anabolic steroids can increase cardiac and liver issues… Etc.. The potential for accidental harm with the medication examples listed for Schedule III drugs is far higher when compared to the potential side effects of cannabis.



As time has passed since the re-scheduling announcement, I have been marinating on whether it would be better for cannabis to be placed in a Schedule III status or to be de-scheduled entirely. As a cannabis nurse my bias is for the plant and the people who could benefit from cannabis. I have also been coming up with many questions regarding rescheduling cannabis and if it will positively impact patients:

  • What does rescheduling make easier for the current dispensaries all over Oklahoma and the US?

  • If cannabis is rescheduled to make it similar to codeine with Tylenol, would it even still be able to be sold by dispensaries?

  • Would changing it to Schedule III make it a drug that had to be counted each shift? In hospitals and nursing homes medications that are Schedule III have to be counted at the beginning and end of every shift. Is cannabis then going to be counted by flower or stem?

  • Are dispensaries going to be forced to hire a pharmacist or doctor to review each prescription and then package it up?

  • What about the people who can’t get out of their house for whatever reason? If it is counted like codeine, will that mean it can no longer be picked up/delivered by a trusted friend or family member?

  • Will the way people sign up for medical marijuana cards change? Here in Oklahoma it is fairly easy to get an MMJ card, but our doctors offices/clinics can be extremely hard to get into or through too.

  • If MMJ is rescheduled will all things medical cannabis related be moved to the already over taxed shoulders of clinic staff? Then what specialty handles this? Does it go to the PCP clinic or would it be a pain clinic type setting?


The questions keep coming to mind, cannabis is a deep rabbit hole to go down. Amidst all the questions, I am hopeful still that removing cannabis from its Schedule I status will increase our ability to further research cannabis medicine and reduce the stigma as it becomes more mainstream. If you are looking for more information on the subject of rescheduling versus de-scheduling the American Cannabis Nurses Association (ACNA) has several wonderful articles that you can read over. What are your thoughts on rescheduling versus de-scheduling cannabis? Currently I’m in favor of cannabis being Dr-scheduled instead of re-scheduled. Put your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to talk about cannabis re-scheduling versus de-scheduling (all things cannabis really).


And if you are so inclined, there is a public comment period that is going on right now until July 22. www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/05/21/2024-11137/schedules-of-controlled-substances-rescheduling-of-marijuana


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