Joe Biden to sign bipartisan cannabis research bill

US President Joe Biden intends to sign the bipartisan cannabis research bill. The text was passed by the US Congress last Wednesday.

The Senate unanimously approved the legislation last week, two months after its adoption by the House of Representatives. It is the first piece of cannabis reform legislation in U.S. history to be sent to the President.

«Yes, he's going to sign it,» a White House spokesperson told Marijuana Moment via email at Marijuana Moment.

After signing the legislation, the U.S. Attorney General will have 60 days to either approve the request or ask for additional information.

What's in the law?

The Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act encourages Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the US Food and Drug Administration, to develop cannabis-derived medicines. In particular, it proposes to allow accredited medical and osteopathic schools, practitioners, research institutes and Schedule I manufacturers to grow their own cannabis for research purposes.

Under the bill, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the anti-drug agency, would be responsible for approving applications to manufacture FDA-approved cannabis-derived medicines. Manufacturers would also be allowed to import cannabis to facilitate research into the plant's therapeutic potential.

Another section requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to examine the health benefits and risks of cannabis, as well as the policies that impede research on cannabis grown in legal states, and provide recommendations for overcoming these obstacles.

The bill further states that «it is not a violation of the Controlled Substances Act for a state-licensed physician to discuss» with patients the risks and benefits of cannabis and cannabis-derived products.

Joe Biden remains opposed to cannabis legalization at the federal level, but he has is campaigning on a number of reforms cannabis, including the promotion of research, decriminalization and the reclassification of cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Last month, Joe Biden has also granted mass pardons to Americans who committed federal cannabis possession offenses, and ordered an administrative review of cannabis classification. The White House recently listed these actions among the President's «major accomplishments».