TSA’s medicinal cannabis error fixed; Legalising medical marijuana in Australia may save lives

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will not allow users to take medical marijuana either on checked or carry-on bags. It will not look at medicinal cannabis any differently than non-medical cannabis.

Even if marijuana is considered legal under certain local laws, the TSA is governed by the federal law; and federal law does not differentiate medical marijuana from non-medical one. Thus, one cannot carry medicinal cannabis on a flight. However, the TSA website, for a brief period of time, wrongly informed air travellers that it was OK to bring the drug on flights. This error upped the hopes of many cannabis legalisation supporters. Now, they are disappointed again.

The error was spotted by TSA when Tom Angell posted about the entry on a cannabis website, and a cannabis group tweeted on the find. TSA quickly corrected the entry on its website by changing the pair of green “yes” next to “medical marijuana” to two red “no.” Next, the TSA responded to the issue with a brief statement, stating that the entry was a mistake.

“There was an error in the database of a new search tool that is now corrected. While we have no regulations on possessing/transporting marijuana, possession is a crime under federal law. Our officers are not looking for illegal narcotics, but they have to report them to law enforcement when discovered,” TSA spokesman Michael England told CNN.

The spokesperson underscored the role of TSA and stated that possession of cannabis, including medicinal cannabis recommended by a doctor in accordance with a state law, is still in violation of federal law. The DEA still classifies marijuana as a “Schedule 1” drug that places it alongside other harmful drugs such as heroine. Such classification means that cannabis still falls under substances with “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” The entry on the recently added search tool previously said that TS security officers will not check for marijuana or other drugs.

In case marijuana appears during TSA screening, it would be referred to a law enforcement officer. However, it was erroneously mentioned that TSA will allow medical marijuana in check-in or carry-on bags. Meanwhile, comedian Wil Anderson has said that legalising medicinal cannabis in Australia will save a lot of lives. He has battled osteoarthritis for years and is pretty open about his use of medical marijuana to get relief from the crippling pain. He sincerely hopes marijuana is legalised in Australia soon.

“Three million people have chronic pain in this country and it’s a thing where they normally will diagnose you open opioids, and there’s this amazing opioid addiction as a result. In America, since they’ve (allowed) medicinal marijuana, in some states opioid deaths have gone down by one-third, so it is saving lives,” Anderson said on The “Project,” reports News.com.au.