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Running Head: MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

Medical use of Marijuana:

Should it be Legalized in Virginia or not?

Molly J Short RN

James Madison University

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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

Abstract

I do not believe that marijuana should be legalized in Virginia other than for medical use. The

social and legal ramifications of legalization would ne challenging to deal with given the current

state of healthcare in Virginia. Research needs to ne encouraged to utilize the positive medical

uses of marijuana and its many compounds but also include the long-term effects and the effects

on pregnant women and children who are exposed to marijuana. Additional studies need to

monitor and assess social and legal effects on other states. This research will assist Virginians in

making informed decisions and long-range plans.

Keywords: legalization, research, marijuana

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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

Medical use of marijuana: should it be legalized in Virginia or not?

Despite the many positives to the legalization of marijuana, I feel that it is not the route to

go to legalize it as a recreational drug in Virginia. Widely used throughout history for fiber, food,

and medicine, cannabis is well-documented in ancient Chinese and Arabic medicine texts and

found buried in ancient Egyptian tombs (Rosi & Sorbello, 2019). As of September 2015, the

cultivation, possession, and/or use of marijuana is illegal under U.S. federal law as a Schedule I

narcotic (Smith, 2016). As of now it is legal in four states and Washington, D.C. Forty-six other

states allow some form of medicinal marijuana or decriminalizing possession of small amounts

of marijuana.

Doctor recommended medical use of marijuana was first legalized in 5 states and the

District of Columbia in the 1990s. Recreational marijuana use (without medical reason) usually

uses a strain of marijuana with higher levels of the psychoactive component, THC.

Decriminalization in states occurs when the legal penalties of having lesser amounts of the illegal

drug are reduced.

Legalization of marijuana use has opened the door for states to regulate the industry

leading to more consistency of quality standards. In addition, states have benefitted through

increased revenues by the taxation of product sales and fees associated with opening of

businesses associated with growth, production and sales of the product. Also, the legal systems

of the states have benefitted through a decrease in criminal activity, prosecution and number of

incarcerated individuals for having small amounts of drugs for personal use.
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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

In states where decriminalization occurred, states have benefitted with decreased criminal

activity, overcrowding of judicial system and jails. They no longer arrest or prosecute citizens

who have small amounts or are growing of marijuana for personal use.

In states where legalization/decimalization has occurred, an increase in tourism has been

an unexpected positive by product of the legalization of marijuana. The large influx of visitors

from other states where marijuana is not legal was an economic boom to many other industries

such as hotels, restaurants, etc. was not considered when initial legislation was passed in the

early stages of this movement.

The negatives that have been identified with legalization of marijuana can be divided into

two areas: social and medical. The total effects are still being documented since this

phenomenon is so new. Some of the negative social aspects identified include some of the same

sorts of issues that arise with alcohol use: underage use and/or exposure, increase in motor

vehicle accidents, inappropriate decision-making while under the influence of marijuana.

Cannabis legalization has led to significant health consequences, particularly to patients

in emergency departments and hospitals in Colorado (Roberts, 2019). Issues that have been

identified with the new resurgence of documented use of marijuana include but are not limited to

psychosis, suicide, decrease in critical thinking and decision-making skills. In addition,

detrimental effects to cardiac and respiratory system have been noted. Marijuana is still

considered by many to be a gateway drug for users, leading to use of more dangerously addictive

recreational drugs. A secondary issue is the affects on the body of contaminants found in the

marijuana products such as heavy metals and pesticides. Unexpected issues have arisen from

untrained marijuana dispensary workers giving harmful advice to consumers to increase sales.
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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

The positives on health have been clearly documented. One of the key benefits of

marijuana use is reduction in nausea and vomiting secondary to chemotherapy. There have also

been some documented benefits to in reduction of epileptic seizures and muscle spasticity from

Parkinson’s disease.

One of the drawbacks of having marijuana designated as an illegal substance is the

inability of respectable labs to do research. With the legalization of marijuana, research can be

done to establish standards of quality so that the consumer will be assured of what they are

buying. In addition, standardization of dosages across the different formulas of marijuana can

now occur so that the same dose can be equivalent in whatever form the consumer wants to use.

A key factor that has benefitted healthcare is the increased research that is being done on

the therapeutic effects of the different active chemical components in marijuana. Marijuana’s

regulation by law enforcement in the U.S., rather than the medical community, led to an almost

complete halt to academic and scientific research after the 1930s (Smith, 2016). Grants and

funding are now available to labs in the states where the drug has been legalized for more testing

to be done. There are more than 200 cannabinoids produced by marijuana, with

tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) being the most widely familiar (Rosi &

Sorbello, 2019). Quantitative research on the various compounds and their combinations for

therapeutic value is essential to effective use. This increase in quality research should help to

clarify and identify the medicinal positives and negatives.

At this time, early research and experimentation has shown cannabinoids may target in

parallel several processes that play key roles in AD, including Aβ and tau aberrant processing,

chronic inflammatory responses, excitotoxicity, mitochondrial dysfunction, and oxidative stress,

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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

among others (Aso & Ferrer, 2014). One of the key areas of research is to create the therapeutic

effects without the psychoactive effects.

` I agree with use of medical marijuana. I feel that the use should be reviewed and

approved through the Food and Drug Administration like all other drugs used in the United

States. This would ensure that the marijuana drug compounds have been effectively researched

and tested for safety and effectiveness before widespread use.

I do not feel that recreational use of marijuana and its compounds are beneficial. This is

would create an increase in social issues like those identified above. We have enough challenges

in our society without adding more. According to provision 3 of the nurse’s code of ethics, the

nurse is to advocate for and protect our patients (Winland-Brown, Lachman, & O’Connor

Swanson, 2015). By encouraging the legalization of marijuana without proper research is not

protecting our patients.

I will be watching news from Oregon closely over the next few years to see the effects of

their NOV 2020 Measure 110 passing. Oregon voters approved a controversial ballot measure

decriminalizing possession of small amounts of so-called hard drugs, including cocaine, heroin,

oxycodone and methamphetamines. Measure 110 also applies marijuana sales taxes toward

payments for drug addiction treatment (Cleve Wootson, 2020). It will be interesting to see what

effects the passage of this measure has on their rehabilitation care system. It would seem to me

that this will require a major re-organization of the health care facilities in Oregon to manage this

legislative change and its long-term ramifications. I know here in Virginia, mental health and

drug rehabilitation centers are not a priority in our health care structure with many facilities

closing in last 15 years.

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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED

References

Aso, E., & Ferrer, I. (2014). Cannabinoids for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease: Moving
toward the clinic. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 5. doi:10.3389/fphar.2014.00037

Cleve Wootson, J. (2020, November 04). Oregon decriminalizes possession of hard drugs, as
four other states legalize recreational marijuana. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/11/04/election-drugs-oregon-new-jersey/

Pettinato, M. (2017). Medicinal cannabis. Nursing, 47(8), 40-46.

doi:10.1097/01.nurse.0000521022.07638.35

Roberts, B. (2019). Legalized Cannabis in Colorado Emergency Departments: A Cautionary

Review of Negative Health and Safety Effects. Western Journal of Emergency Medicine,
20(4), 557-572. doi:10.5811/westjem.2019.4.39935

Rosi, P., & Sorbello, J. (2019). Medical marijuana. Journal of Nurse Life Care Planning,
(Summer 2019), 20-24. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from
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bBIsKaeSbioslKvr55oy5zyit%2fk8Xnh6ueH7N%2fiVaussk%2byqrJQtqekhN
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%2fDj34y73POE6urjkPIA&vid=2&sid=52497234-fbe2-473d-8356-efc8657fece3@pdc-v-
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Smith, D. E. (2016). Marijuana: A Fifty-Year Personal Addiction Medicine Perspective. Journal

of Psychoactive Drugs, 48(1), 3-10. doi:10.1080/02791072.2015.1116720

Winland-Brown, J., Lachman, V. D., & O’Connor Swanson, E. (2015). The New ‘Code of Ethics
for Nurses With Interpretive Statements’ (2015): Practical Clinical Application, Part I.
Medsurg Nursing, 24(4), 268-271.
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MEDICAL USE OF MARIJUANA: SHOULD IT BE LEGALIZED