The NFL will no longer suspend players for cannabis use

National Football League (NFL) players will no longer face suspensions if they test positive for cannabis under a new collective bargaining agreement approved by team owners last Thursday. The agreement is now being circulated among the players, who are set to review the new terms with their representatives during a conference call.

If the agreement If ratified, the league will implement several changes to its drug policy regarding players' use of cannabis. The new policy would reduce penalties for players who test positive for THC, including the elimination of suspensions based solely on a single positive test result, according to a fact sheet published by the NFL Players Association which covers the key terms of the agreement.

The NFLPA has sent all players a fact sheet outlining the key points of the current proposal for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. There's a lot to go through here... pic.twitter.com/tzOhyLOmhY

— Darren Heitner (@DarrenHeitner) February 21, 2020

The new rules would also reduce the number of players subject to THC testing and shorten the testing window from four months to just two weeks at the start of training camp each season. The threshold for THC metabolites detected in a screening test would also be raised from 35 ng/ml to 150 ng/ml in the blood.

The Major League Baseball also announced changes its cannabis policy, announcing in December that it would remove cannabis from its list of banned substances. Although major league players have not been tested for cannabis since 2006, minor league players were still being tested for THC and faced disciplinary action if they tested positive.