U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer (R-MI) recently introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would authorize medical cannabis clinical research trials to be undertaken by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
“Veterans across the country continue to suffer from chronic pain and PTSD as a result of their service, and too many are being lost to opioid overdose and suicide here at home,” said Rep. Meijer. “We owe it to our nation’s veterans to pursue alternative treatment that could be safer and more effective.”
Specifically, the VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act of 2021, H.R. 2916, which Rep. Meijer cosponsored on April 30 with bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Luis Correa (D-CA), would direct the VA Secretary to carry out a series of clinical trials on the effects cannabis has on certain health outcomes for United States military veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic pain, according to the text of the proposed bill.
The companion bill, S. 1467, was introduced on April 29 by U.S. Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester (D-MT) and U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK).
If enacted, the measure would direct the VA to conduct scientific and medical research into the safety and efficacy of medicinal cannabis usage by veterans, and to provide Congress with a report outlining its plan to conduct research and to report findings and progress while periodically conducting the study, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Meijer’s office.
“There remains a need for increased research and trials on cannabis as an alternative treatment,” Rep. Meijer said, “and this bill will help ensure that the VA moves forward with these studies expeditiously.”