Trump signs executive order to ease marijuana restrictions

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to expedite marijuana’s reclassification as a less dangerous drug that could offer medical value. It could lead to the cannabis industry’s biggest U.S. regulatory change in half a century.

Marijuana will remain a controlled substance that’s illegal for most people to possess under federal law, but the administration’s move could fuel more research and provide tax breaks to cannabis companies.

The order calls on Attorney General Pam Bondi to expedite the process of rescheduling marijuana from a Schedule I controlled substance, the most restricted level, to Schedule III, putting it on par with steroids and codeine mixed with Tylenol.

“We have people begging for me to do this,” Trump said at the Oval Office signing surrounded by health officials, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “For decades, this action has been requested by American patients suffering from extreme pain, incurable diseases, aggressive cancers, seizure, disorders, neurological problems and more, including numerous veterans who live with chronic medical problems that have severely degraded their quality of life.”

The order will also make cannabis easier for Medicare and Medicaid recipients to get by introducing a model that would cover medically recommended products with CBD, a non-intoxicating compound that comes from hemp, a close relative of marijuana, at no cost for seniors. Medicare Advantage beneficiaries will be able to purchase regulated hemp-derived products. These benefits will start next year.

“These CBD products must first meet local state quality and safety standards,” said Medicaid and Medicare Administrator Mehmet Oz at the signing. “They must come from legitimate sources, and they must abide by other regulations of those states. With these boxes checked, patients can be eligible for up to $500 of hemp-derived products each year.”

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will collect data on patients using cannabis products.

HHS will conduct research to improve access to products made with CBD, and White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair will work with Congress on improving access to CBD products.

The announcement comes at a time when most Republicans in Congress are pushing to scale back the use of cannabis for recreational and medical purposes, adding another point of division for the GOP as it scrambles to unify behind a plan to make health care more affordable.

A group of 22 Republican senators, including top party leaders like Majority Whip John Barrassoof Wyoming, Conference Chair Tom Cottonof Arkansas, Conference Vice Chair James Lankford of Oklahoma and Policy Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capitoof West Virginia, urged Trump on Wednesday to keep cannabis as a Schedule I drug, arguing marijuana is highly addictive and that rescheduling it will undermine Trump’s effort to reinvigorate America.

The deal that ended the government shutdown last month included a GOP-backed provision that would effectively ban products made with CBD.

Trump’s order asks Congress to revisit that law, which prohibits the manufacturing of products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC, an intoxicating compound related to CBD. The goal is to “potentially update that definition, so that full spectrum CBD products would still be available,” according to a senior administration official granted anonymity to provide technical details on the directive.

“I think it’s a mistake,” said Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) about the president’s executive order. “I don’t agree with the president on everything and this is one of the things I don’t agree with him on.”

Robert King contributed to this report.