Report: U.S. government to allow more research on marijuana

Catherine Garcia, The Week US's avatar
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last updated
The leaves of a marijuana plant.
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is set to announce Thursday that while the U.S. government will allow more research into marijuana, it will not be reclassified from its current status as a Schedule 1 drug, sources tell The Guardian.

The decision is a response to a petition filed by two former state governors in 2011. Schedule 1 drugs, including heroin, LSD, peyote, and ecstasy, have "no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse," and the petition asked that marijuana be reclassified as a drug that does have accepted medical uses. In 25 states, marijuana can be used for medical purposes, and in four states, recreational use for adults is legal.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.