Marijuana For Veterans With PTSD Is Finally Going to Be Legal

When it comes to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan War, 20% have experienced symptoms of PTSD, while the suicide rate after returning home is 50% higher than that of civillians. While many prescription drugs to treat PTSD come with harsh side effects, marijuana has been found to treat depression and many other ailments. With the federal government's war on drugs it may have been thought impossible, but last week the National Institute of Drug Abuse finally approved marijuana for clinical trials, and for physicians at VA hospitals to prescribe the drug to suffering soldiers.

Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) have co-sponsoring the relevant bill for these studies and the legalization that is expected to result, called the Veterans Equal Access Act. That bill will allow physicians at VA hospitals to prescribe medical marijuana for veterans suffering from PTSD. .