Compassionate Access Act

Bill: 114-hr-1774
Sponsor: Rep. Griffith, H. Morgan [R-VA-9]
Introduced: 2015-04-14 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Alternative treatments
Department of Justice
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
Drug trafficking and controlled substances
Drug, alcohol, tobacco use
Intergovernmental relations
Medical research
Prescription drugs
Research administration and funding
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: 

Compassionate Access Act 

 
This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services to submit to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) a recommendation to transfer marijuana from schedule I to another controlled substances schedule. The DEA must consider the recommendation and issue a final rule to reclassify marijuana. 
 
It permits, for reclassification purposes, consideration of scientifically sound research conducted in a state that allows medical marijuana and in accordance with state law, even if such research uses non-federally approved marijuana.
 
The legislation amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to:
 
 
exclude "cannabidiol" (CBD) from the definition of "marijuana" and remove it from coverage under the CSA;
 
limit the concentration of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in CBD to 0.3% on a dry weight basis; and
 
deem marijuana grown or processed to make CBD, in accordance with state law, to comply with the THC concentration limit unless the DEA determines state law to be unreasonable. 
 
 
No provision of the CSA or Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act prohibits or restricts a physician from prescribing; a patient, caregiver, or guardian from obtaining, possessing, or transporting; an entity from producing, processing, manufacturing, or distributing; a pharmacy from dispensing; or a laboratory from testing medical marijuana or CBD in compliance with a state's medical marijuana law. 
 
The bill requires the Attorney General to delegate responsibility for registering marijuana researchers to an executive branch agency that supports research on substances' medical value. Such agency must ensure adequate marijuana supply for medical research. 
 



Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-15
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations.
action_date: 2015-04-17
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2015-04-14
text: Introduced in House