Medical Use of Marijuana

Marijuana has been used for medical purposes for at least 4000 years. It was a commonly known painkiller, anti-inflammatory, and anti-nausea drug that was used for a multitude of conditions throughout the ancient world. In more modern times, marijuana was the analgesic of choice until the development of aspirin in 1899. Legal HistoryMarijuana was effectively outlawed in the United States by the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act. The Act implemented a complicated tax scheme, which could result in fines for any infractions. Interestingly, one of the major opponents of the Act was the American Medical Association.In 1956, mandatory sentencing was set for marijuana possession for the first time. By 1970, when the Controlled Substances Act created a list of five "schedules" for illegal and prescription drugs, marijuana was asserted to have no medical value and was placed on the rigorously controlled Schedule I. However, it was the "War on Drugs" begun in the 1980s that created…