Tom Price, Donald Trump’s selection to head the gigantic Health and Human Services Administration, is an anti-marijuana extremist.
It is as if the President is appointing cabinet members based on their anti-marijuana zealotry.
The HHS is a massive federal grouping of health care and related organizations. Decisions in many of these organizations are very important to the status of marijuana, especially medical use, in the USA and around the world. Some of the dozens of components of this federal giant most relevant to marijuana status include:
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Into the leadership of the HHS steps a clear enemy of marijuana, its users, and its legalization, Rep. Tom Price R-GA. During his long career as congressman, Price has had many opportunities to vote against marijuana reform. Among his worst offenses are repeatedly voting against the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendments that (up until next April) have ended enforcement of federal marijuana law in states where cannabis is legal medically. He also voted (three times) to prohibit VA physicians from even discussing medical marijuana for pain and PTSD.
of the Washington Post did a great job of cataloging Price’s problems with cannabis in “Donald Trump adds another marijuana opponent to his Cabinet.” Ingraham wrote,
Kevin Sabet of the group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, an anti-legalization group, called the Price pick “encouraging,” saying “HHS plays a big role in drug prevention and I think that what we need is more awareness and prevention around marijuana.”
Sabet is correct about HHS’ huge role in marijuana policy in the USA. Unfortunately, Tom Price will be a key anti-cannabis propagandist as HHS Secretary. His prohibitionist views closely align with those of anti-marijuana crusader and (gasp) Attorney General Jeff Sessions, cannabis-hating Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, and all the rest of the radical right Trump cabinet.
Tom Price – Caricature | by DonkeyHotey
