Amid Sharp Increase in Cannabis Poisonings, Trump Admin Could Soon Reclassify Marijuana

President Trump said Monday he is considering downgrading marijuana from a Schedule 1 drug, the most dangerous kind, alongside heroin and LSD, to a Schedule 3 drug, and would make his decision "over the next few weeks.  

Reducing marijuana from a Schedule 1 to a Schedule 3 drug means cannabis businesses will enjoy a reduced tax burden and greater access to banking. It would also expand research opportunities into marijuana's medicinal potential.

The president said, "That determination hopefully will be the right one. It's a very complicated subject."

Meanwhile, anti-marijuana groups are petitioning the president and asking regular citizens to join the effort.

President Trump told reporters at a White House briefing that he sees both sides of the issue.

"Some people like it, some people hate it. Some people hate the whole concept of marijuana because it does bad for the children, it does bad for people that are older than children," he said. "I've heard great things having to do with medical, and I've heard bad things having to do with just about everything else. But medical, you know for pain and various things, I've heard some pretty good things but for other things I've heard some pretty bad things."

Last year on Truth Social, President Trump appeared to support reclassification by posting his administration will "focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug," and support "safe banking for state authorized companies" and "states rights to pass marijuana laws."

Marijuana is legal in 40 states for medical use and 24 states for recreational use. That easy accessibility, coupled with high THC content, which makes today's pot more potent than in years past, has led to a sharp increase in cannabis poisonings.  

According to America's Poison Centers, last year more than 22,000 people reported cannabis poisonings to poison control centers. That number was 930 in 2009. Most of the cases were teens or children.

Dr. Shamieka Dixon, a pediatrician at Atrium Health Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, said she has seen patients as young as two-years-old who have been accidentally poisoned with marijuana.

"I have taken care of numerous children over the years who have unfortunately gotten into parents, friends, relatives, marijuana or THC gummies and other candies because they come in cute little packages," she told CBN News. "They're colorful, they often look just like candy."

Dr. Dixon said overdoses in children can create severe symptoms like a racing heart and agitation that can lead to hospitalization.

"They may exhibit hallucination, so they may be seeing or hearing things that are not there, which as you can imagine, can be scary," she said. "Other people may have some gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and things of that nature."

It's not only the health consequences that are raising concerns.  Some, like Luke Niforatos, Executive Vice President of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, warn of the spiritual dangers of marijuana. 

"I think for Christians, they should heed what the Bible says in First Peter that we should be sober and alert," he told CBN News. "I think that if you're somebody who believes the Bible, you should look to verses like that and see that obviously getting high, whether it's marijuana or any other drug, not a very good idea."

Smart Approaches to Marijuana is asking President Trump to reject the decision to move marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug.

"If marijuana was moved to Schedule 3, it would not be legalized. However, what it would do is send a message to the general public that marijuana really isn't such a big deal," Niforatos said. "And this is really coming at a time when marijuana is a much bigger deal than it ever has been before. We're now seeing products up to 99% potent that are being sold at pot shops versus just two-to-three-percent potency in the Woodstock days when hippies were the ones responsible for marijuana use and sales."

The organization is inviting those who share their concern to log onto www.NoSchedule3.com to sign a petition. 

"Then when you're done with that, you can go to our website, www.learnaboutsam.org and there we have the steps for you to take to write to the White House," Niforatos said. "And then finally, you can go on social media. Get on X, tag the President, tag the Vice President. Let them know that you don't want them to reschedule marijuana."