Pros & Cons Of Legalization of Medical Marijuana Research Paper

1 ) Introduction

The debate over the legalization of marijuana is highly controversial. On the one hand, opponents of marijuana insist that marijuana is a light but dangerous drug that may have long-run negative effects on the health of addicts as well as on their social environment. On the other hand, there are proponents of the legalization of marijuana, who are aware of the fact that a large part of the population consumes marijuana, at least occasionally, and inspired by findings of scientists which prove the positive effect of marijuana on the treatment of different serious health conditions. The legalization of marijuana is a highly controversial issue because marijuana is a light drug which has hard consequences, in case of addiction, but marijuana should be legally admitted for the medical use as the effective remedy to be used in the treatment of serious health conditions

2 ) Pro-legalization standpoint

Marijuana has a considerable potential as the remedy used in medicine because, according to recent researches (Christenson 176), marijuana can be used for the treatment of various serious diseases, such as the Alzheimer’s disease. However, health care professionals cannot use the full potential of marijuana for medical purposes because of its legal ban. Therefore, using marijuana for medical purposes is illegal, at the moment, because marijuana is still the illegal drug. However, researchers (Nestler & Malenka 81) insist that further studies can uncover the full potential of marijuana, while even existing studies have already proved the positive effect of marijuana on the treatment of various diseases.

Furthermore, the US public still opposes to the legalization of marijuana, although other countries have already legalized marijuana or marijuana for medical use. The experience of those countries reveals the fact that the legalization of marijuana has not skyrocketed the drug consumption. Anyway, there are no disastrous effects in terms of the public health, or social order, or crime rates that means that the apprehensions of opponents of the legalization of marijuana are ungrounded.

At the same time, the refusal from legalization of marijuana for the medical use only can threaten to the life and health of patients. The legal ban of marijuana makes it impossible to use the drug in the treatment of patients, even if marijuana can help them to recover or cope with their health problems more efficiently than other existing and legal drugs (Cohen 20). In such a context, the ban of marijuana for medical use turns out to be unfair and, more important, dangerous for health of patients, whose health depends on this drug.

On the other hand, marijuana is already widely used in spite of its illegal status that provokes the growth of criminal activities. Therefore, even though marijuana is illegal, this drug is among the most popular substances after alcohol and tobacco in the US (Wolf 151). The high level of the consumption of marijuana for recreational purposes creates the paradoxical situation, when health care professionals cannot use marijuana for the treatment of patients, whereas individuals can consume marijuana due to its availability, in spite of its illegal status. Therefore, marijuana turns to be banned for the legal use in medicine only, while drug addicts and other individuals can consume marijuana for recreational and other purposes.

3 )  Counter-legalization standpoint

However, the legalization of medical marijuana can trigger the mass consumption of marijuana because the average people may erroneously believe that marijuana is useful for their health. The lack of adequate understanding of the impact of marijuana on human health can boost the consumption of the drug and aggravate its negative impact on healthy people. Consumers may be unwilling to consume marijuana under the strict guidance and supervision of health care professionals (Leavitt 219). Instead, the legal status of medical marijuana may be used as a loophole for the mass consumption of marijuana by the average consumers of the drug.

Furthermore, medical marijuana permit may be misused for the mass production of marijuana for non-medical use. The legalization of marijuana for medical use only will boost the cultivation and production of the drug. In such a situation, there is a risk that law enforcement agencies will be unable to maintain adequate control over the production of marijuana. For instance, there is a risk that a part of marijuana cultivated presumably for medical use only will be used for non-medical purposes. In other words, there is a risk that marijuana manufacturers will use the legalization of the drug for the mass production of the drug for all purposes use instead of medical use only and law enforcement agencies may fail to maintain the control over the drug production after the legalization of medical marijuana.

In addition, the legalization of medical marijuana can increase the risk of the development of addiction to stronger drugs, if marijuana consumption is not controlled effectively by health care professionals. The legalization of marijuana can make the drug even more available to consumers than it is now. Therefore, the risk of the increased drug consumption is very high. At this point, policy makers should be aware of the fact that marijuana is the light drug that can trigger the development of the drug addiction. However, the development of the drug addiction will inevitably lead the development of addicts’ dependence on harder drugs because light drugs like marijuana cannot always bring the feeling of euphoria which actually is one of the main drivers that forces people to consume drugs. Hence, after marijuana they will try other, harder drugs, including heroin or cocaine (Kreit 1789). As a result, the addiction of consumers on marijuana will transform into the addiction to synthetic and other drugs which are more harmful than marijuana and cause irrevocable changes in the physiological condition of consumers.

However, the negative view on the legalization of marijuana is still quite controversial in light of the huge potential of the medical use of marijuana. In fact, other drugs used in the contemporary medicine can also be used as drugs by drug addicts. This is why there is the strict control over the drug production and use. Therefore, law enforcement agencies can set the similar restrictions and control over the production of marijuana for medical use. This is why the position of opponents of the legalization of marijuana for the medical use only is not consistent. Instead, the legalization of marijuana for the medical use only will be the fair solution to the current debate over the legalization of marijuana because this will be the fair solution for patients suffering from serious health problems, who need marijuana for their medication.

4 ) Conclusion

Thus, the legalization of medical marijuana is essential to save health and life of people, whereas arguments against the legalization of the drug are inconsistent in light of the health effect of marijuana on patients suffering from serious health problems. In fact, marijuana is the light drug that is available to many people, in spite of its illegal status. In such a situation, it is apparently unfair to ban marijuana from the legal use in medicine because marijuana is available for virtually everyone but patients, who really need it for the treatment of their serious health problems. The legalization of marijuana for the medical use only can tackle the problem of the legal use of marijuana for the medical use. In addition, the legalization of marijuana for the medical use only will introduce the strict control over its production and distribution as is the case of other drugs manufactured and sold nationwide. In such a way, the public just needs to change the attitude to marijuana as the illegal drug. Instead, people should understand that marijuana is the drug that can be used in medicine.

 

Works Cited:

Cohen, P.J. “Medical Marijuana, Compassionate Use, and Public Policy: Expert Opinion or Vox Populi?” The Hastings Center Report. 36(3), 2006, p.19-24.

Christenson, V. “Courts Protect Ninth Circuit Doctors Who Recommend Medical Marijuana Use.” Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics. 32(1), 2004, p.174-178.

Kreit, A. “The Future of Medical Marijuana: Should the States Grow Their Own?” University of Pennsylvania Law Review. 151(5), 2003, 1787-1795.

Leavitt, F. The Real Drug Abusers. New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003.

Nestler, E. and Malenka, R. “The Addicted Brain”. Scientific American, Mar. 2004, p.78-83.

Wolf, M. “Addiction: Making the Connection Between Behavioral Changes and Neuronal Plasticity.” in Specific Pathways Molecular Interventions, 2, 2002, p.146-157.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]
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