Dagga groups sue US gov

US advocates for legalising use of marijuana for medicinal purposes have sued the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), charging both have issued "false and misleading statements" about the drug's medical benefits.

A non-profit group called Americans for Safe Access, based in Oakland, California, challenged the government agencies' contention that marijuana "has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States," The New York Times reported Thursday.

The group's attorney, Joseph Elford, cited a recent study by the Clinical Research Centre at San Francisco General Hospital, which found that smoking marijuana relieved pain and eased other symptoms of HIV. That study was sanctioned by the FDA, Elford told the newspaper.

An HHS spokeswoman refused comment, saying the agency didn't issue statements on pending litigation. But she did say that the government stood by its statement of April 2006, in which it said "there is currently sound evidence that smoked marijuana is harmful." – (HealthDayNews)

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February 2007