The U.S. Senate approved a bill that would allow for veterans living in medical marijuana states to be able to use those programs without any negative repercussions. Approaching the night time on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, the Democrats and Republicans both decided to help out the United State’s veterans by signing off on the FY2016 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill. As a result, physicians working through the Veterans Administration will be able to talk about medical marijuana with the veterans that they tend do. In addition, it will also give veterans the chance to engage in their state’s program without having prescription pills taking away or any other negative result.
“Veterans in medical marijuana states should be treated the same as any other resident, and should be able to discuss marijuana with their doctor,” deputy director of national affairs for the Drug Policy Alliance, Michael Collins, said. “It makes no sense that a veteran can’t use medical marijuana if it helps them and it is legal in their state.”
This was not accepted before, though; a few months ago, the U.S. House of Representatives rejected the concept 213-210. This was mostly a result of Republicans refusing to help veterans suffering from conditions that resulted from them protecting the United States. Despite this, on Tuesday, the Senate version was brought up to be a part of a federal spending bill.
At the moment, the Department of Veterans Affairs does not allow for doctors that work for them to even talk about medical marijuana with the veterans. Furthermore, the department has refused services to give prescriptions to any veteran who tested positive for marijuana. The newest update to the VA guidelines now gives veterans the ability to use medical marijuana, however, they need to sign an “opiate consent” form that will give the department the right to take away their painkiller privileges if they come out positive for THC during a drug screening.
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