The United Nations removed cannabis for medical use out of a category designated for the world’s most dangerous drugs in a move that could greenlight research and medical marijuana use to become more widespread.
A Wednesday vote by the Commission for Narcotic Drugs, which includes 53 member states, approved removing the drug from Schedule IV classification of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, according to a report by the New York Times.
The Schedule IV classification listed marijuana in the same category as heroin and is designated for drugs that are limited in medical or therapeutic value.
The drug remains listed under Schedule I of the international drug control system, according to Marijuana Moment, which tracks updates and news related to cannabis.
Schedule I drugs are listed as ones with addictive properties that present a serious risk of abuse. The category, which includes fentanyl, requires the highest levels of international control.
The removal of marijuana as a Schedule IV drug will loosen international controls on the drug, but governments will still have their own jurisdiction on how to classify the drug.
Several Western nations, including the United States, were supportive of the move, while other countries such as China, Egypt, and Russia opposed the choice.
Part of the focus on marijuana comes from the effect it has had on U.S. and European markets, especially as cannabis becomes further legalized in several states across the U.S.
According to multinational investment and financial services company Cowen, the market for cannabis is expected to expand over $34 million by 2025.
While cannabis is still illegal on a federal level, a number of states in the U.S. have legalized marijuana in some capacity, whether it is for medical or recreational use. Five states, including Mississippi, South Dakota, Montana, Arizona, and New Jersey, voted to legalize the drug in some form in this year’s general election.
According to Tech Crunch, the new passages for legalization will allow one in three people in the U.S. to buy cannabis legally.
