House Approves Measure Helping Veterans Gain Access To Medical Marijuana

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A measure making it easier for military veterans to take part in state medical marijuana programs has won approval in the House of Representatives.

In a news release, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) said that he and his House colleagues Brian Mast (R-FL), Dave Joyce (R-OH), and Barbara Lee (D-CA) had successfully passed their amendment in the Republicans spending package to end the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) prohibition on assisting veterans in accessing medical marijuana.  Blumenauer is founder and co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.

Under the current VA policy, providers are prohibited from recommending, making referrals, or completing forms for medical marijuana, regardless of whether their state has legalized it for medical use.

“One of the most painful vestiges of the failed war on drugs is the continued denial of the therapeutic properties of cannabis,” said Blumenauer. “Nowhere is this more apparent than at the VA, which use to hand out opioids like Tic-Tacs but bars providers from even discussing a far safer alternative to treat chronic pain, PTSD, anxiety, and depression: medical cannabis.”

The amendment, which passed by a vote of 290-116, would prohibit funds appropriated for the Department of Veterans Affairs in the 2025 fiscal year from being used to enforce the VA’s anti-marijuana policy.

“Our veteran population is facing multiple epidemics, including addiction and suicide, and we owe it to them to make sure they’ve got every tool possible in the arsenal to deal with the impacts of battle – that includes medical cannabism,” said Congressman Mast, Co-Chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.

Another amendment that was approved by the House would encourage VA to support research into the benefits of psychedelics in treating medical conditions commonly affecting military veterans.

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