As many veterans continue to self-medicate using cannabis to ease post-traumatic stress disorder and other war-induced health problems, the Department of Veterans Affairs has discontinued its research into the drug, Politico reported Nov. 8.
VA physicians are unable to prescribe cannabis or issue medical marijuana cards in the 36 states where it is legal given that cannabis is still classed as a Schedule I drug by the Justice Department, meaning it is seen to have no medical benefit. Now, the VA has denied calls to expand some of its research into medical marijuana, meaning it will also continue denying cannabis recommendations to veterans.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has testified to Congress, urging lawmakers to increase research into cannabis use given the "substantial evidence" that it has the potential to treat chronic pain. The VA is currently studying the effects of synthetic CBD alongside psychotherapy as a treatment for PTSD and plans to begin a study on the effect of synthetic THC and CBD on neuropathic pain in 2022.
Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Lou Correa, D-Calif., both introduced legislation Nov. 4 that would instruct the VA to conduct research into the use of marijuana in PTSD and depression and allow VA physicians to recommend medical marijuana. However, despite broad bipartisan support, neither proposal has reached a floor vote.
In 2018, 18 veterans a day died by suicide on average, demonstrating the depths of the mental health crisis facing them. Calls to the veterans crisis line increased 6 percent in the weeks following the United States' withdrawal from Afghanistan, suggesting veterans continue to need more support and solutions.
"The very populations who have the greatest need are often the ones who are the most understudied," said Staci Gruber, PhD, director of the Marijuana Investigations for Neuroscientific Discovery program at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass.