As more people continue to push for changes with the cannabis legislation, certain members of the current presidential administration have slowly started coming around to support it as well. One of the most recent people to start considering these changes is the so-called White House drug czar, Rahul Gupta. He has reported that the White House would be open to the idea of “Safe Consumption Sites,” provided certain conditions are met.

Clarification

For those unfamiliar with the term, “drug czar” is the informal term for the one in charge of the drug enforcement policy. Specifically, this refers to the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Rahul Gupta. These “safe consumption sites” are areas where the people will be able to safely ingest currently illicit drugs. The reasoning behind these sites is to potentially reduce harm to the populace by allowing access in medically supervised areas. Additionally, it would allow the people to have access to treatment resources.

Past Attempts

In the past, Gupta has resisted talking about the idea of the safe consumption sites due to a litigation that was going on at the time. This litigation was, at the time, related to a nonprofit in Philadelphia that involved making such a facility. However, he is now more open to discussing the sites. One of the reasons that these sites are slow to get started is because of the so-called “crack house statute,” which makes it a felony to use a location for manufacturing, distribution, or consumption of controlled substances.

Reasoning

The purpose of these sites is to find a way to offset the current overdose crisis. However, the administration is still vague on whether or not it supports these sites. However, Gupta has hinted that they are more open to the idea. Additionally, the Secretary of the HHS, Xavier Becerra, added to the discussion. He reported that the administration is looking for ways to further research harm reduction practices.

Future

With even the so-called Drug Czar of the Biden administration, the supporters are outnumbering the detractors against cannabis reform more and more. With these research results, these supporters hope that it will push lawmakers into supporting the changes.

Make sure to check back for more cannabis, hemp, and psychedelic related news.