PA Lawmakers Unveil Legal Pot Plan, NC "Gas Station Heroin" Ban Now in Effect, More... (12/3/24)

A DEA administrative law judge held a largely procedural hearing on marijuana rescheduling Monday, a leading Australian medical body calls for drug decriminalization, and more. 

Products containing tianeptine, now banned as a controlled substance in North Carolina. (FDA)

Marijuana Policy

DEA Rescheduling Hearing Part II Will Come Next Month. Hearings on whether to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act got underway Monday, although the first day of hearings was centered on procedural—not substantive—issues. DEA Chief Administrative Law Judge John Mulrooney II heard no evidence or testimony during Monday's hearing but did put a timeline on a second hearing. 

That hearing will begin in mid-January, Mulrooney said, and will run "Tuesday through Thursday…for as long as it takes."

Mulrooney did not clarify when he might rule on the case, but it now appears likely to be no earlier than February. That's when some parties designated to participate in the rescheduling process said they would be available. 

But that doesn't mean nothing else is going on. More filings in the case are due December 13 and more documents are due on January 3. 

In Monday's hearing, Mulrooney seemed primarily concerned with narrowing the focus on what evidence and testimony he will hear. 

"Remember, everybody, this is not a trial whether marijuana is good or bad," he said at one point. "I don’t know if it’s good. My issues are much more narrow than that. It has to do with addiction potential and several other little pigeonholes that I have."

Mulrooney also warned that he would seek to reasonably limit the evidence presented. 

"Here’s a spoiler alert," he said. "I am not going to be reading anybody’s book. I don’t have the lifespan to read mountains of evidence. I want the evidence that’s important."

Pennsylvania Lawmakers Unveil New Marijuana Legalization Plan. Democratic state Reps. Rick Krajewski and Dan Frankel are distributing a memo seeking sponsors for a marijuana legalization bill they plan to introduce in next year's legislative session. The pair, who led several marijuana reform hearings in the legislature this year, say the state's continuing prohibition of marijuana when it is bordered by several legal marijuana states makes it "an outlier."

The co-sponsorship memo makes the argument for legalizing marijuana and emphasizes key portions of the bill they plan to file next year. 

"As a state that continues to criminalize recreational cannabis, Pennsylvania is now an outlier—24 states have legalized the practice, including 5 of the 6 states that border Pennsylvania," they wrote in the memo. "But legal or not, Pennsylvanians are consuming marijuana, whether by visiting our bordering states, buying unregulated hemp loophole products at gas stations and vape shops, or purchasing in the illicit market," they continued.

Marijuana prohibition has failed to make the state safer, the pair said. 

"Prohibition is a failed policy with significant consequences to our Commonwealth," the memo reads. "It has ruined lives over minor cannabis offenses, disproportionately impacting Black and Brown communities. Consumption of unregulated and dangerous products has increased. And we are losing millions of public revenue that our communities need." 

Drug Policy

North Carolina Ban on "Gas Station Heroin" Now in Effect. As of Sunday, it is now a crime to sell or possess tianeptine, an antidepressant with opioid agonist effects, within the state. Users, sellers, and manufacturers of the drug, popularly known as "gas station heroin" for its opioid-like effects, will now face the same penalties as those caught with opium, fentanyl, or methamphetamine.

That's because the state legislature earlier this year approved House Bill 903, which added tianeptine to the state's controlled substances list. 

"It’s the same feel you get from heroin, the same addiction you get from heroin, being sold right over the counter," said. Rep. Stephen Ross (R) said during floor debate.

The Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings about tianeptine, noting it has been linked to seizures, loss of consciousness, and death. But it is not on the federal list of controlled substances, and only one other state—Florida—has banned it. 

International

Australian Medical Body Calls for Drug Decriminalization. One of the premier medical bodies in the country, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) is calling for sweeping drug reforms, including drug decriminalization, marijuana legalization, and expanded needle exchange programs. 

"We think it's time we have a whole of society discussion about where we want to be in this area, and where we actually want to put our funds to prevent people from getting into those cycles of ill health, and popping in and out of institutions and incarceration," said RACP President Dr Jennifer Martin.

The RACP listed 17 calls to action under the broad rubric of harm reduction, including "further steps to decriminalize the use of drugs and possession for personal use' across drug classes and communities; establishing trials of regulated cannabis markets; expanding drug checking services and pill testing trials; more free syringe programs and medically supervised injecting centers."

"Importantly, we recognize that both the use of drugs and our government's response to the use of drugs can cause harm and that stigma surrounding drug use can have profound and far-reaching consequences for individuals who use drugs," the position paper reads," the RACP said. 

The RACP represents more than 30,000 medical specialists across Australia and New Zealand who engage in 33 different medical specialties, including addiction medicine, public health, and general medicine. Medical professionals in the region consider it an elite, influential, and conservative body. It last updated its drug policy prescriptions 20 years ago. The new policy statement will be used to lobby governments and organizations across Australia, "outlining the rationale and evidence for a health-focused approach to inform policy development."

The revised RACP drug policy came just ahead of this past weekend's New South Wales drug summit, but the current government in the state is not interested. 

"The premier's made some things clear around decriminalization, that we probably wouldn't be going down that path per se," said state Health Minister Ryan. "What we'll be doing is working out how we can do things better. Can we improve what we're already doing? And then what are the opportunities to do things in a more collective way going forward."