OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
6:03 PM – Thursday, December 18, 2025
President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue and expedite the potential rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III — a major shift in federal drug policy by advancing a process that could lead to federal recognition of the drug’s medicinal qualities.
“Americans deserve access to the best medical treatments and research infrastructure in the world. In 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) completed a review of the landscape of medical use of marijuana and found scientific support for its use to treat anorexia related to a medical condition, nausea and vomiting, and pain. Chronic pain affects nearly 1 in 4 United States adults and more than 1 in 3 United States seniors, and 6 in 10 people who use medical marijuana report doing so to manage pain.
Forty States plus the District of Columbia have State- or locally-sanctioned, regulated medical marijuana programs. Yet decades of Federal drug control policy have neglected marijuana’s medical uses. That oversight has limited the ability of scientists and manufacturers to complete the necessary research on safety and efficacy to inform doctors and patients,” the Trump White House stated.
Flanked by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz, among other more libertarian-leaning conservative officials in the Oval Office, Trump described the move on Thursday as a “common sense” approach to healthcare.
“Today, I’m pleased to announce that I will be signing an executive order to reschedule marijuana from a schedule one to a schedule three controlled substance with legitimate medical uses,” Trump said during the signing.
The order instructs Attorney General Pam Bondi to “take all necessary steps to complete the rulemaking process in the most expeditious manner,” building on a prior recommendation from the HHS.
Marijuana has been classified as a Schedule I substance since 1970, alongside deadly drugs like heroin and hallucinogenic and destabilizing drugs LSD — indicating no accepted medical use and high abuse potential.
Moving to Schedule III would place it with substances such as codeine combinations and anabolic steroids, which have lower abuse potential and recognized medical applications. The change is intended to expand and streamline research into marijuana’s efficacy for conditions such as chronic pain — affecting one in four U.S. adults — in addition to nausea, anorexia, insomnia, and seizures.
It also aims to address gaps in patient-doctor discussions about cannabis use, particularly among seniors, where one in ten reported some sort of usage last year. If finalized, rescheduling would lower barriers to scientific studies, potentially paving the way for FDA-approved treatments and clearer guidelines for healthcare providers.
Over 6 million registered patients in states with medical programs could ultimately see benefits from improved access and more standardized care. For the cannabis industry, a shift to Schedule III would also bring economic relief: Businesses could deduct ordinary expenses under IRS Section 280E, opening the door to tax breaks and improved profitability.
Cannabis-related stocks rallied in response to reports of the administration’s move. However, federal possession laws remain unchanged for now, and recreational use is unaffected. Full implementation requires DEA rulemaking, public comment, and potential legal challenges, and the outcome is not guaranteed until the administrative process is complete.
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