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Adopted Resolutions
67th General Assembly
November 2003
Minneapolis, Minnesota
RESOLUTION ON THE MEDICINAL USE OF MARIJUANA
BACKGROUND
According to our tradition, a physician is obligated to heal the sick
(Maimonides commentary on Mishnah Nedarim 4:4). The use of marijuana as
medicine goes back at least 5,000 years. Under the Controlled Substances
Act of 1970, U.S. law currently defines marijuana as a Schedule I drug-a
prohibited substance-having no currently accepted medical use in treatment
in the United States, a high potential for abuse, and a lack of evidence
of safety for use under medical supervision. In contrast, Schedule II
drugs have restricted access as highly controlled medications that are
prescribed in writing in triplicate using the physician's assigned number.
Moreover, Schedule II medications are for use in pain management for a
limited period of time in limited quantity.
Anecdotally based reports on the medical use of marijuana have indicated
that it provides relief from symptoms, conditions and treatment side effects
of several serious illnesses. These include glaucoma, the wasting syndrome
associated with HIV/AIDS, nausea associated with cancer chemotherapy,
and muscle spasms that often accompany multiple sclerosis and chronic
pain. Thus far, scientific studies regarding the efficacy and safety of
marijuana use for therapeutic purposes have been inconclusive.
In recent years the development and implementation of pain management
have changed. In the United States, more than 30 states have approved
legislation in support of the medicinal use of marijuana. U.S. federal
law supersedes state law, however, and prevents the implementation of
these states' mandates. Because marijuana is not legally available in
the U.S., except for research purposes pursuant to limited Investigational
New Drug applications approved by the Food and Drug Administration, many
patients cannot avail themselves of this therapy and must resort to the
black market to obtain relief and are thus subject to arrest or incarceration.
At this time, Health Canada, the Canadian federal department of health,
permits the use of marijuana for medical purposes. A court case is pending
to determine the method by which patients will obtain the marijuana.
In January 1997, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy
asked the Institute of Medicine to assess the potential health benefits
and risks of marijuana and its cannabinoid compounds (the primary psychoactive
ingredients). The Institute of Medicine's report, released in March 1999,
recommends continued research into physiological effects of marijuana's
constituent cannabinoids and their potential therapeutic value for pain
relief, including closely monitored clinical trials of smoked marijuana.
The Institute of Medicine's report also recommends short term use (less
than 6 months) of marijuana for patients with debilitating symptoms for
whom all approved medications have failed and relief of symptoms could
be reasonably expected, with treatment administered under medical supervision
and the guidance of an institutional review board.
THEREFORE, the Union for Reform Judaism resolves to:
1. Urge elected officials in the United States to support federal legislation
and regulation to allow the medicinal use of marijuana for patients with
intractable pain and other conditions, under medical supervision;
2. Urge the Food and Drug Administration to expand the scope of allowable
Investigational New Drug applications in order to move research forward
more quickly toward an approved product;
3. Call for further medical research on marijuana and its constituent
compounds with the goal of developing reliable and safe cannabinoid drugs
for management of debilitating conditions; and
4. Call upon congregations to advocate for the necessary changes in local,
state and federal law to permit the medicinal use of marijuana and ensure
its accessibility for that purpose.
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See http://urj.us/cgi-bin/resodisp.pl?file=marijuana&year=2003N
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