Amy Rising grinds up medical marijuana before smoking. Rising, an Air Force veteran, has been working on legislation that would allow veterans to treat post-traumatic stress disorder with medical cannabis. VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act of 2018 would authorize VA to advance such research in a five-year study to examine the drug’s safety and efficacy, and require VA researchers to compile annual status reports for Congress. Companion legislation is under review by leaders of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. VA is working through federal restrictions in at least one location — the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston, S.C. — to initiate ­marijuana-related research focused on veterans in hospice care.

Source: Washington Post April 19, 2018 00:11 UTC