President Biden is reportedly going to rescind a last minute rule change by the outgoing Trump administration that would have allowed more physicians to prescribe an opioid-treatment drug. Some say the move was long overdue, as it would have let doctors prescribe the drug without special training or a license—and therefore expand use of the medication as part of addiction withdrawal treatment. Biden has expressed support for the new regulation, but legal experts say that the Department of Health and Human Services lacks the authority to issue such guidelines because the requirements are mandated by Congress. There are also clinical concerns about the drug, buprenorphine, as the opioid epidemic has been fuelled by overprescribing and therefore requires additional safeguards.
Meanwhile, a New York Times analysis of the marijuana market in Canada two years after legalization shows that many of the promises made at the time have not been met. For example, the for-profit industry continues to struggle while the black market thrives; Indigenous communities feel their needs are being ignored; and the injustices that came from criminalizing pot have yet to be fully remedied.
And finally, the Washington Post takes up a similar theme, looking at whether the emerging cannabis market in the United States is an agent of social justice—as many supporters of legalization claim—or just another big business. Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, tells the Times that cannabis companies have failed to deliver for communities of color, noting that disproportionate arrests and steady incarceration rates persist in legal states.