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A key GOP House committee has approved a large-scale defense bill with a number of marijuana and psychedelics provisions attached, including a proposal to prohibit military branches from testing recruits for cannabis.<\/p>\n
The House Armed Services Committee passed the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
A provision that was included in the Military Personnel subcommittee\u2019s draft NDAA proposal and ultimately incorporated into the legislation<\/a> passed by the full panel calls for an update from the Department of Defense (DOD) on the status of its psychedelics clinical trials that are being conducted as prescribed under the 2024 version of the bill.<\/p>\n Members also accepted an amendment from Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) that would require DOD to issue a report on how many service members have been discharged due to marijuana.<\/p>\n Under a section on recruitment, the bill proposes eliminating marijuana testing for enlistment purposes:<\/p>\n \u201cSEC. 531 PROHIBITION ON CANNABIS TESTING FOR ENLISTMENT OR COMMISSION IN CERTAIN ARMED FORCES.<\/p>\n Subject to subsection (a) of section 504 of chapter 31 of title 10, United States Code, the Secretary of the military department concerned may not require an individual to submit to a test for cannabis as a condition of enlistment of such individual as a member, or the commission of such individual as an officer, of an Armed Force.\u201d<\/p>\n That mirrors a proposed amendment to DOD appropriations legislation last year\u00a0<\/a>that was led by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).<\/p>\n Gaetz told Marijuana Moment last week that the NDAA cannabis provision was \u201ca collaborative effort.\u201d<\/p>\n DOD told lawmakers last year that marijuana\u2019s active ingredient delta-9 THC is the\u00a0most common substance that appears on positive drug tests<\/a>\u00a0for active duty military service members. And several military branches have taken steps to loosen cannabis-related restrictions, including\u00a0issuing waivers for recruits who test positive their first time<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mace said her amendment that was adopted as part of an en bloc package on Wednesday would demand a report from DOD \u201con how many troops have been kicked out over the last decade for using cannabis.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs more states legalize, we need data to assess whether these discharges serve in the best interest of our national security,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u2014 Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 22, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n An additional amendment from Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) that was adopted<\/a> by the panel<\/a> would require a DOD briefing on sentencing for cannabis-related offenses under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.<\/p>\n Mace also touted a separate amendment that she says \u201csupports states\u2019 rights by incorporating findings from 38 state marijuana programs into research.\u201d<\/p>\n Given PTSD & brain injury rates among the veteran community, diverse treatments are crucial. Our #NDAA25<\/a> amendment supports states’ rights by incorporating findings from 38 state marijuana programs into research.<\/p>\n \u2014 Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 23, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n The legislation as proposed by the Military Personnel subcommittee also includes report language to follow up on provisions in the most recently enacted NDAA that provide funding for DOD-led clinical trials on the therapeutic potential of psychedelics<\/a>\u00a0for active duty military service members.<\/p>\n The report language says the committee \u201cwants to ensure the establishment of the program is progressing without impediment,\u201d and calls on DOD to provide Congress with a status update report by January 31, 2025. Here\u2019s the section:<\/p>\n \u201cSection 723 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (Public Law 118-31) established a Department of Defense program to study the effectiveness of psychedelic substances and plant-based therapies in treating post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries. The committee wants to ensure the establishment of the program is progressing without impediments. Therefore, the committee directs the Secretary of Defense to provide a briefing to the House Committee on Armed Services no later than January 31, 2025, on the following with regards to the progress of the program:<\/p>\n (1) the Department\u2019s process for funding eligible entities;<\/p>\n (2) the Secretary\u2019s selection for lead administrator to carry out the program;<\/p>\n (3) a list and description of the eligible entities that have been selected for the program;<\/p>\n (4) how the Department notified and selected servicemembers to participate in the program;<\/p>\n (5) how many servicemembers have requested participation in the program;<\/p>\n (6) how many servicemembers have been selected for participation in the program;<\/p>\n (7) any issues the Department is encountering establishing the program;<\/p>\n (8) any anticipated delays to implementing the program; and<\/p>\n (9) any other information the Secretary deems relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R-TX), a former Navy SEAL with personal experience with psychedelics treatment who championed the underlying amendment, told Marijuana Moment earlier this year that\u00a0he planned to separately meet with military leadership to collaborate<\/a>\u00a0on how to effectively administer the program.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, a top official at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) said at a conference this month that he was initially \u201csurprised\u201d by the level of bipartisan support for psychedelic medicine in Congress<\/a>. He said, at this point, psychedelics policy enjoys a greater level of bipartisanship than marijuana.<\/p>\n The conference took place about two weeks after the House Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee passed a bill to require VA to\u00a0notify Congress if any psychedelics are added to its formulary<\/a>\u00a0of covered prescription drugs.<\/p>\n Daily Marijuana Use In U.S. Is Now More Common Than Daily Alcohol Drinking, New Study Finds<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Image element courtesy of Kristie Gianopulos<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Congressional Committee Approves Defense Bill With Marijuana And Psychedelics Provisions For Military Service Members<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A key GOP House committee has approved a large-scale defense bill with a number of marijuana and psychedelics provisions attached, including a proposal to prohibit military branches from testing recruits for cannabis. The House Armed Services Committee passed the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on Wednesday. A provision thatContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":75578,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75577"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75577"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75577\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75579,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75577\/revisions\/75579"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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#FY25NDAA<\/a> AMENDMENT PASSED:
We are demanding a report from the DoD on how many troops have been kicked out over the last decade for using cannabis. As more states legalize, we need data to assess whether these discharges serve in the best interest of our national security.<\/p>\n\n
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#FY25NDAA<\/a> AMENDMENT PASSED:<\/p>\n\n
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\nRead More: Congressional Committee Approves Defense Bill With Marijuana And Psychedelics Provisions For Military Service Members<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"