Trump Posts Video On Medical Benefits Of Cannabis For Seniors As White House Weighs Rescheduling

President Donald Trump on Sunday shared a video promoting the health
benefits of cannabis—suggesting that covering CBD under Medicare would be
“the most important senior health initiative of the century.”

As the marijuana industry awaits Trump’s decision on a pending rescheduling
proposal, the president’s decision to put a spotlight on the video that was
produced by The Commonwealth Project immediately drew the attention of
stakeholders.

What the nearly three-minute clip—which repeatedly refers to “hemp derived
CBD”—means for broader marijuana rescheduling’s prospects is unclear. But
it also comes amid a contentious debate in Congress about federal hemp
laws, with some GOP lawmakers vying for an outright ban on cannabis with
any trace amounts of THC. Experts say that would effectively eradicate the
hemp market, as it’s considered unfeasible to produce even non-intoxicating
CBD products without at least some level of THC.

The video Trump posted also briefly features a Fox News clip describing the
economic benefits of medical marijuana legalization, saying that on an
annual basis it would amount to cost savings of “$64 billion a year if
cannabis is fully integrated into the healthcare system.”

“The groundbreaking 2018 Farm Bill championed by President Trump was the
first step” toward modernizing health care integrating cannabis, the
narration says. That refers to the landmark legislation that federally
legalized hemp containing up to 0.3 percent THC, which Trump signed in his
first term.

Notably, the video also states that “it’s time to educate doctors on the
endocannabinoid system, provide Medicare coverage for CBD and give millions
of seniors the support they deserve.”

At a time when certain senior lawmakers, including Sen. Mitch McConnell
(R-KY), are pushing for policy changes that threaten to upend the CBD
market, touting a promotion that calls for Medicare coverage of the
cannabinoid is notable.

“You will deliver the most important senior health initiative of the
century, cementing your legacy and transforming aging care,” it says.
“Millions everywhere will thank you.”

While Trump didn’t directly comment on the video, here’s a transcript of
part of its narration:

“You can revolutionize senior health care. We’ve all heard about the major
systems in our bodies—like the digestive, respiratory, nervous and
cardiovascular systems–but there’s one essential system discovered in the
90s that you probably never heard of. It makes all of the other systems
work smoothly with each other, like a conductor, ensuring the different
sections of an orchestra all play a beautiful symphony together. This
system is called the endocannabinoid system. It has been acknowledged and
studied by scientists extensively, with support from the National
Institutes of Health.

As we age, the system weakens. As a result, the different systems in our
body stop working together smoothly. That’s one of the reasons older adults
struggle with pain, inflammation, cognitive decline and other ailments of
aging for which doctors often prescribe dangerous and addictive
pharmaceuticals. They also recommend lifestyle remedies such as exercise,
good diet and stress management. And while all these improve the system, it
is only fractionally and over a long time. But here’s the game changer: The
system can be restored faster using hemp-derived CBD. When the system is
restored, pain subsides, sleep is improved and stress is reduced. When the
system is restored, disease progression can slow down, and years are added
to your life, as well as years spent in good health. And 20 percent of
seniors are already using CBD today for pain, arthritis, cancer, symptoms,
sleep disorders, Alzheimer’s and many other ailments of aging. But doctors
are not equipped to provide guidance, and there are no FDA standards for
what is already in the market today. Imagine if that were the case for
other medications. Older adults are suffering needlessly. Hemp-derived CBD
can help them feel better, live longer and improve their quality of life
significantly.”

Meanwhile, a new poll shows that a majority of Americans don’t consider
marijuana dangerous, though most do think consuming cannabis increases the
likelihood that people will transition to using more dangerous drugs.

The poll is one of the latest temperature checks on American sentiment
toward drug policy as Trump weighs a proposal to move marijuana from
Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

And while a leading prohibitionist group, Smart Approaches to Marijuana
(SAM), recently claimed a poll they commissioned demonstrated majority
opposition to rescheduling, a policy change that Trump endorsed on the
campaign trail, the result flies in the face of multiple other national
surveys showing support for reform that goes beyond rescheduling.


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Another recent survey from the Coalition for Cannabis Policy, Education,
and Regulation (CPEAR), which was conducted by the firm Forbes Tate
Partners, showed that seven in 10 American voters want to see the end of
federal marijuana prohibition—and nearly half say they’d view the Trump
administration more favorably if it took action on the issue.

A poll released in June that Marijuana Moment partnered on with the
cannabis telehealth platform NuggMD showed that a majority of marijuana
consumers disapprove of the Trump administration’s actions on cannabis
policy to date, but there’s also a significant willingness among users to
shift their position if the federal government opts to reschedule or
legalize marijuana.

Earlier this year, meanwhile, a firm associated with Trump—Fabrizio, Lee &
Associates—also polled Americans on a series of broader marijuana policy
issues. Notably, it found that a majority of Republicans back cannabis
rescheduling—and, notably, they’re even more supportive of allowing states
to legalize marijuana without federal interference compared to the average
voter.

The post Trump Posts Video On Medical Benefits Of Cannabis For Seniors As
White House Weighs Rescheduling appeared first on Marijuana Moment.