Follow the money: Schedule III marijuana

The recent decision by federal agencies to move state-level "medical" marijuana licensed products from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Controlled Substances classification does not make sense. This is especially true when you understand the criteria for each classification:

Schedule I: Drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse (ex., heroin).

Schedule II: Drugs that have a medical use, but also have a high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence (ex., Ritalin). 

Schedule III: Drugs that have a medical use, but also have a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence (ex., Tylenol with codeine). 

Schedule IV: Drugs with medical use and a low potential for abuse and low risk of dependence (ex., Xanax).

Schedule V: Drugs with lower potential for abuse than Schedule IV and consist of preparations containing limited quantities of certain narcotics (Robitussin AC).

Marijuana has already shown to cause high rates of abuse and addiction. For starters, everyone who uses the drug recreationally is, by definition, abusing the drug. Secondly, the 2026 White House Drug Strategy report reaffirms the most current data on marijuana addiction; about 30% of people who use marijuana are addicted to it and that includes 20.6 million of Americans. Furthermore, marijuana misuse is the number one reason that individuals under age 20 seek addiction treatment.

The current abuse and addiction rates alone should mandate that medicinal use marijuana be classified as a Schedule II drug. So why jump over this category entirely and go straight to Schedule III?

The answer: money.

Manufacturers and distributers of Schedule I and II drugs are not allowed to claim federal tax benefits and write offs, but Schedule III drug manufacturers and distributors are able to claim these tax benefits. Currently, the marijuana market is a $38 billion industry. It is estimated that this change to Schedule III will allow them to claim up to $20 million in tax benefits annually.

It is sad to think that a public health decision as important as marijuana rescheduling was influenced by high-dollar lobbyists. However, it is also hard to ignore the fact that the current administration received approximately $1 million in campaign donations from high-dollar marijuana companies. (Trulieve was estimated to be the biggest donor of the bunch.)

In the coming months, our federal government will decide if they will reschedule recreational marijuana, even though the use of any scheduled drug for non-medical purposes is considered illegal. This is a whole other nonsensical issue on its own.

What can we do about this? Contact your federal representatives and advocate for the passage of the No Deductions for Marijuana Businesses Act, HR1447.

To learn more about why marijuana does not belong in Schedule III, or what harm it will do to our youth who are already struggling with marijuana addiction and its fallout, please read the op-eds Dr. Wiggins and I published in the Washington Examiner and The Western Journal.

Non-paywall Washington Examiner op-ed HERE.

The Western Journal op-ed HERE

My takeaway to all of this is: our children deserve better. Our federal policies are robbing them of their future on so many other levels, and now the Schedule III decision is greenlighting the perception that marijuana is less harmful than it already has proven to be.