Legalization of Medical Marijuana

For instance, in some states, they allow medical marijuana dispensaries as well as home cultivation. Others may only allow home cultivation. The issue on legalizing medical marijuana can be compared to the prohibition of alcohol that was done in the 1920s that factored the health of the public. However, similar to the prohibition of marijuana, alcohol prohibition led to increases in crime rates as well as congestion in prisons for drug-related charges. The opponents argue that there is little data and evidence that support the medical benefits of marijuana. For instance, according to Morris et al. , (20), in the article titled "the effects of medical marijuana laws on crime" found out that the juveniles whose urine test were positive for marijuana have a significantly high number of referrals to the juvenile courts compared to those who had negative results.

The opponent, therefore, argues that making the marijuana legal would make these trends of crime to continue. In addition, the results of the study indicate that the use of marijuana during the adolescence stage could also result in violent behaviors in the young adulthood. Another opposition is that many physicians believe that through smoking medical marijuana one is at a higher chance of contracting lung diseases. The other opposition is that the most politicians believe that insufficient clinical trials have been conducted to ensure or guarantee the effectiveness of marijuana for medical purposes. In the society we live today, the direction of medical marijuana largely depends on the available scientific knowledge or research, the set laws, and the socio-political acceptance. However, politicians believe the research on marijuana has failed to meet the basics elements to enable its legislation.

According to the opposition, the lack of adequate research into the medical use of marijuana as well as the long-term health effects of its consumption remains to hurt many Americans (Cerdá et al. Therefore, whether marijuana is used in different ways for medical purposes, the lawmakers argue that the public deserves to know how best to avoid or use marijuana. Even though the opponents such as federal drug administration argue that medical marijuana is addictive, I believe that there are many drugs that are currently in use that are addictive but if monitored well it can be avoided. The use of marijuana can be very beneficial to a variety of people especially the ones living with certain conditions that are causing pain, severe lack of appetite or intense vomiting.

Therefore, like any other medication or supplement, the use of marijuana might potentially be addictive to some individuals. However, recent statistics by the national institute of drug abuse (NIDA) indicates that only 9% of marijuana drug users become addicted compared to 30% addiction for heroin and tobacco each (Cerdá et al. It is fair to justify that the issue of addiction has been drawn out of proposition and exaggerated and the small percentage can be avoided if monitored. Despite, the arguments from the opponent, their point of view on the issue is not concreate enough to dispute the legalization of marijuana. However, to address the various issues raised by the opposition, it is important to allow more clinical trials to ensure adequate scientific evidence, control the rate of smoking marijuana and ensure that the prescriptions offered are professional and valid.