The Ethical Use Of Medical Marijuana

The use of marijuana for medicinal purposes is a long-standing controversy. For centuries marijuana was prescribed to alleviate symptoms associated with a variety of illnesses. Anti-medical marijuana sentiments began with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act banned the use of marijuana completely, categorizing it as a drug with no medicinal value, high abuse rates, and detrimental health effects (http://www.farmacy.org/prop215/apha.html). Since 1996, numerous states including California, Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington have passed medical marijuana initiatives supporting the right to prescribe marijuana for seriously or terminally ill patients (http://www.marihemp.com/marimed.html). The American Public Health Association and the Institute of Medicine represent two organizations that have recently researched and endorsed advancements in the study of medical marijuana. Both groups support the use of marijuana for specific treatments, such as reducing nausea in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, stimulating the appetites of AIDS victims, and limiting spasticity in MS patients.

No matter what it’s called: reefer, hemp, cannabis, or weed, the medicinal properties of the leafy green herb have been recognized for centuries and the medicament was readily available in pharmacies as early as 1840 and continued to be for nearly another one hundred more. Then came “Reefer Madness”, a propaganda movie critical of the effects of marijuana and the plant, despite its known benefits, became prohibited. Fast forward to 1996 and the Compassionate Care Act of California gave the first hope to patients in need of new treatment alternatives. Though some states have legalized the use of marijuana for both medicinal and recreational use, it remains illegal federally. Legalization of medical marijuana will offer a safer, more cost-effective approach to disease management for people suffering from debilitating conditions, as well as generate state and federal

Works Cited Missing Instead of addressing the tiresome argument about whether or not marijuana should be legalized in the United States, I would like to examine a much more fundamental question: whether or not it is right to use the drug. This problem is strictly an ethical one. If we are to examine only the moral implications of the action then we must discard governmental laws from the equation, for this decision could be made anywhere, at any time, under any sort of governmental regime, under any set of laws, which after all are only that particular government’s best guess at morality and who’s to say their judgment is any better than yours? Knowing that this decision is a rather daunting one, I’ve enlisted the help of three

The debate on Medical marijuana has been a controversial subject mainly because people have an abundance of opinions and very little scientific research to back up either side of the debate. The most important question here is “will medical marijuana be used for medical purposes or will it be used inappropriately?”

Legalizing marijuana is crucial to the medical field because many patients cannot use this marvelous plant to relieve their pain. This plant can help patients with multiple sclerosis, nausea from cancer chemotherapy, HIV, nerve pain, and seizure disorders. Many patients must go behind the doctors back and consume cannabis or give it to a loved one to relieve their pain. Only twenty-nine states have allowed the use of medical marijuana. Furthermore, that means that twenty-two states do not allow the usage of any form of Cannabis. Marijuana should be an all-around legal

 Obedience, a common way of making ethical decisions. Generally agreeing to the patients consents, following the rules fall under this approach.

Joycelyn Elders, former Surgeon General, once spoke about the legalization of marijuana for medical use in a press conference. "It's criminal to keep this medicine from patients," she said (Silverman, 1995, pg. 2). She received criticism not only from many citizens of the United States, but also strong criticism from the President who appointed her. The legalization of marijuana for medical use has always been a sharply debated subject, and many of the debaters are uneducated about the effects of using this illegal drug for therapeutic use. Many studies have been done and the results are clear. As a medical drug, marijuana should be available to patients who do not adequately respond to currently available

            Many citizens in the United States suffer from lifelong diseases that cause them to lose the ability to live their day-to-day lives. The United States is now faced with the problem over whether or not drugs, often stigmatized by society, should be made legal. One of these lifesaving drugs is medical marijuana. This leaves us with the troubling question: “should medical marijuana be legalized in the United States?”. Supporters of the drug have argued that it should be legalized because it is superior to other painkillers and can be beneficial to people suffering from numerous illnesses. However, those who oppose its use, argue that not enough research has been done and it may be harmful. The

The topic of legalizing marijuana has been on the fore front of controversial issues ever since marijuana, cannabis, was brought into the United States from Mexico in the early 1920s. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana use in the past two decades, however, only four of those states, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington, have passed the law legalizing recreational marijuana use. Some states have already enacted laws that allowed for the possession of marijuana to such individuals that received a written prescription from their doctors. Federal law, however, has continued to prohibit doctors from writing patients a marijuana prescription, meaning

First, from 1900 to 1940, marijuana, including opium and cocaine were considered part of everyday drugs. As time went on, the U.S. cracked down on crack and opium, eventually outlawing them, but continued to be very “loose” with the use of marijuana. Hoxter a weed smuggler explains how he began in the 1960’s trying weed and years later saw himself unloading four hundred pounds of pot in Vancouver. The story of this man ends in his isolation and argument of why he couldn’t smoke weed even if he stopped selling? He asked a parole officer and she didn’t know what to respond. It is true what Hoxter states, fifty years ago alcohol was illegal and now it’s not, was it bad then? Will weed be legalized? And will the conflicts have been in vain? (Schou 8). Around the late 90’s and early 2000’s, scientific studies started to produce jaw-dropping results. Scientists started to discover that marijuana can significantly help people who have become ill. Medical Marijuana has been tested to help people with cataracts, cancer and severe depression (Zeese 1999). With this new worldwide discovery, the argument about medical marijuana ignited. States wanted to only make medical marijuana legal so it may help sick people, but the government did not want any form of marijuana legal. The law that was known throughout the United States was any form of marijuana was illegal. But now with this new discovery, doctors in states across the country want the

The process by which society detects and interprets information from the external world in a utilitarian theory claims: one should always do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. When one has the motivation to reach goals for the benefit of one’s self it is known as ethical egoism. In this paper we shall consider a brief history of cannabis, the parallels of legalizing medical marijuana and prohibition of alcohol in the 1920’s with regard to ethical egoism and utilitarian theories.

In addition, anecdotal evidence exists that marijuana is effective in the treatment of arthritis, migraine headaches, pruritis, menstrual cramps, alcohol and opiate addiction, and depression and other mood disorders. Marijuana could benefit as many as five million patients in the United States. However, except for the eight individuals given special permission by the federal government, marijuana remains illegal-even as medicine! Individuals currently suffering from any of the aforementioned ailments, for whom the standard legal medical alternatives have not been safe or effective, are left with two choices: Continue to suffer from the effects of the disease; or Obtain marijuana illegally and risk the potential consequences, which may include: an insufficient supply because of the prohibition-inflated price or unavailability; impure, contaminated, or chemically adulterated marijuana; arrests, fines, court costs, property forfeiture, incarceration, probation, and criminal records.

The topic of medical Marijuana brings much controversy when discussing amongst people that are for it or against it. Medical Marijuana has been the heated topic of discussion for the past few years now mainly for it’s medical benefits and the fight to decriminalize the herb.

In the year 2008, Michigan voted in the use of marijuana for medical purposes. I will be exploring two papers, the first is Prohibition Works: Keeping Marijuana Illegal, the second is Legalization of Marijuana. In the paper Prohibition Works the author discusses numerous reasons marijuana should be kept illegal, and the second paper Legalization of Marijuana the author makes many valid points on why marijuana should be legalized for medical use. Michigan now joins 15 other states that have passed laws for consumption of marijuana for medical purposes. Both marijuana and medical marijuana are the same substance. In this paper I will discuss how the federal government views the use of marijuana, how doctors argue their case whether they are

Within this paper I will ask the reader to consider different ethical aspects of the legalization of marijuana, utilizing data provided and studies from the past, attempting to further convey my stance as being pro-legalization of marijuana.