Sanjay Gupta Pushes Even Further in Support of Medical Marijuana
CNN to air new documentary about pot's medicinal value
Last August, CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta completely reversed his position on the use of medical marijuana. He was once an opponent, buying into the flippant claim from government prohibitionists that the plant had no medical value. Then he discovered Charlotte Figi, the little girl whose life-threatening seizures resisted all treatments other than medical marijuana. He came around and even apologized for his previous position, realizing he hadn't done enough research.
Now, he says he's "doubling down" on his support for medical marijuana (though if we're going to abuse gambling metaphors, I'd say he's going "all in"). He's been continuing researching medical marijuana and will be airing a new documentary on Tuesday, March 11, on CNN. He writes:
More remarkable, many doctors and scientists, worried about being ostracized for even discussing the potential of marijuana, called me confidentially to share their own stories of the drug and the benefit it has provided to their patients. I will honor my promise not to name them, but I hope this next documentary will enable a more open discussion and advance science in the process.
Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I substance, defined as "the most dangerous" drugs "with no currently accepted medical use."
Neither of those statements has ever been factual. Even many of the most ardent critics of medical marijuana don't agree with the Schedule I classification, knowing how it's impeded the ability to conduct needed research on the plant.
Acknowledging that marijuana's Schedule I classification is utter nonsense is a nice touch. Read what else he has to say here. He has interviewed several of what he calls "cannabis refugees" – families who have had to move to Colorado in order to get access to medical marijuana because they could get arrested for drug trafficking if they tried to bring it back to their home states.