Oregon Public Broadcasting

The Oregon Board of Pharmacy has officially recognized that marijuana has an accepted medical use.

At the federal level, marijuana is still considered a Schedule 1 controlled substance. That means it’s easily abused and has no accepted medical use.

Oregon is the first state to give the drug a different classification.

Locally, it is now on a list of medical drugs that have addictive potential and require a prescription.

Marijuana will be the only drug on that list that requires a doctor’s recommendation instead.

Gary Schnabel is the director of the Oregon Board of Pharmacy. He says it’s just a technical change. But he agrees it’s confusing. 

Gary Schnabel: “Some pharmacists have contacted the office and wondered whether this was going to authorize or require them to dispense marijuana.”

In Oregon, medical users of marijuana are required to grow the plant themselves or to get it from a registered medical grower. The drug is not available through dispensaries or pharmacies.