September 3, 2019 9:43AM 

# New Roads for Marijuana Research 

By [Jeffrey Miron](https://www.cato.org/people/jeffrey-miron) and Erin Partin 

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News that the DEA is [moving forward](https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2019/08/26/dea-announces-steps-necessary-improve-access-marijuana-research) to improve access to marijuana for research purposes should be cause for celebration. But, if history is any guide, marijuana advocates should remain cautious. It has been [three years](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/08/12/2016-17955/applications-to-become-registered-under-the-controlled-substances-act-to-manufacture-marijuana-to) since the process of increasing the number of entities registered under the Controlled Substances Act to “facilitate research involving marijuana and its chemical constituents” began. [Prior](http://www.maps.org/research-archive/mmj/Craker_1st_Cir_Decision_4-15-13.pdf) to the [2016](https://maps.org/research/mmj/dea-lawsuit-timeline/6294-dea-eliminates-federal-monopoly-on-marijuana-for-research) [announcement](https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-marijuana-dea-20160811-snap-story.html), the DEA had a monopoly on growing marijuana for research purposes. That no progress has been made in the past three years is outrageous, yet not unexpected from the prohibitionist bureaucracy of the DEA.

[Israel](https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2017-04-11/israel-is-a-global-leader-in-marijuana-research), the [Netherlands](https://www.cannabis-med.org/index.php?tpl=page&id=235&lng=en), and [Canada](https://www.thegrowthop.com/cannabis-health/whats-going-on-with-marijuana-research-in-canada) are leading the way in marijuana research. Studies show that marijuana is an effective treatment for [pain](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.3322/caac.21260), [epilepsy](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/epi.12610), [Alzheimer’s](https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/mp060066m), [glaucoma](https://journals.lww.com/co-ophthalmology/Abstract/2016/03000/Cannabinoids_for_treatment_of_glaucoma.10.aspx), and other medical conditions. By refusing to expand researcher access to marijuana, the DEA is taking an indefensible stand against medical progress.

This might be a turning point in the fight for marijuana research, or it may be just another empty promise. One way or another, time will tell.

##### Related Tags 

[Government and Politics](https://www.cato.org/government-politics), [Regulation](https://www.cato.org/regulatory-studies) 

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