Pubdate: Fri, 15 Feb 2008 Source: Herald, The (Everett, WA) Copyright: 2008 The Los Angeles Times Contact: http://www.heraldnet.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/190 Referenced: The American College of Physicians position paper http://drugsense.org/url/RTJp0V7l Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/American+College+of+Physicians Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal) EASE UP ON MARIJUANA, DOCTORS GROUP TELLS FEDS SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A large and respected association of physicians is calling on the federal government to ease its strict ban on marijuana as medicine and hasten research into the drug's therapeutic uses. The American College of Physicians, a 124,000-member group that is the nation's largest for doctors of internal medicine, contends that the long and rancorous debate over marijuana legalization has obscured good science that has demonstrated the benefits and medicinal promise of cannabis. In a 13-page position paper approved by the college's governing board of regents and posted Thursday on the group's Web site, the ACP calls on the government to drop marijuana from Schedule I, a classification it shares with illegal drugs such as heroin and LSD that are considered to have no medicinal value and a high likelihood of abuse. The declaration could put new pressure on lawmakers and government regulators, who for decades have rejected attempts to reclassify marijuana. Bush administration officials have aggressively rebuffed all attempts in Congress, the courts and among law enforcement organizations to legitimize medical marijuana. Clinical researchers say the federal government has resisted full study of the potential medical benefits of cannabis, instead pouring money into looking at its negative effects. A dozen states have legalized medical marijuana, but the federal prohibition has led to an enforcement tug-of-war. Given the conflicts, most mainstream doctors have steered clear of medical marijuana. The ACP position paper calls for protection of both doctors and patients from criminal and civil penalties in states that have adopted medical-marijuana laws. An FDA spokeswoman declined to comment on the ACP's position. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake