Below are excerpts from the conversation at the White House press conference where President Trump signed an Executive Order to move marijuana from a Schedule 1 controlled drug to Schedule III.

President Trump: Well, it was a big day, and many reasons, really, for many reasons, and I have a very distinguished group of people behind me. Mostly medical people and brilliant people, and they really know what they’re doing. And I want to thank them. They truly gave their lives in terms of the time and all of the incredible work they’ve done over the years in arriving at the position they have now, the most respected people in the country. Today, I’m pleased to announce that I will be signing an executive order to reschedule marijuana from a Schedule 1 to a Schedule III controlled substance with legitimate medical uses.

We have people begging me to do this. People who are in great pain.

For decades, this action has been requested by American patients suffering from extreme pain, incurable diseases, aggressive cancers, seizure disorders, neurological problems, and more, including numerous veterans with service-related injuries, and older Americans who live with chronic medical problems that severely degrade their quality of life.

I can’t tell you; I think I’ve probably received more phone calls about this… Hopefully, this reclassification, which, by the way, polls at 82%.

It will help many of those patients live a far better life.

We’re joined today by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, who’s doing a fantastic job, Administrator of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Dr. Mehmet Oz, the FDA Commissioner, Dr. Marty Makary, Director of the National Institutes of Health, Jay Bhattacharya, the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Dr. Nora Valkyo, as well as Dr. Ilana Braun from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Duke University’s Dr. David Casarett, the National Commander of the American Legion, Dan Wiley, and my friend Howard Kessler.

“I want to emphasize that the order I am about to sign is, not the legalization or it doesn’t legalize marijuana in any way, shape, or form, and in no way sanctions its use as a recreational drug. This nothing to do with it.”

Just as prescription painkillers may have legitimate uses, they can also do irreversible damage, if you look at some of the damage that can be caused, wreck lives if they’re abused. It’s never safe to use powerful controlled substances in recreational manners.

I’ve always told my children, Don’t take drugs, no drinking, no smoking. And just stay away from drugs. They would look at me, and they would say, Dad, would you stop saying that? I would say it every time I looked at them, practically. Young Americans are especially at risk, so unless a drug is recommended by a doctor for medical reasons, just don’t do it.

“At the same time, the facts compel the federal government to recognize that marijuana can be legitimate in terms of medical applications when carefully administered in some cases.”

This may include the use as a substitute for addictive and potentially lethal opioid painkillers that cause tremendous problems. Marijuana can help in a less risky way and make people feel much better.

Forty states and multiple U.S. territories have already recognized the use of medical marijuana.

“This reclassification order will make it far easier to conduct marijuana-related medical research, allowing us to study benefits, potential dangers, and future treatments. I believe it’s going to have a tremendously positive impact.”

“We’re also asking Congress to reconsider its classification of hemp-derived CBD to ensure seniors can access CBD products they have found beneficial for pain and other reasons.”

Some people are literally dying with tremendous pain, and this can, in many cases, literally stop it, and they can have their senses about them, as opposed to painkillers, which don’t allow that, don’t allow them to die with dignity, frankly.

I promised to be the President of common sense, and that is exactly what we’re doing. This is really about common sense, and it’s that many people I respect ask me to do it.

People are having problems, big medical problems. They are having big problems with illness, with cancer in particular.

I would now like to invite Dr. Oz to say a few words, followed by Dr. Braun, Dr. Cassarette, Dan Wiley, and Dr. Valkow.

“And, we’ll sign the order as soon as they complete their statement.”

Dr. Oz: Mr. President, thank you for always bravely pushing for common sense change, as you call it. So, President Trump and Secretary Kennedy have been pushing for change, their passion, their desire to help the American people, and they have relentlessly pursued this agenda throughout this administration. This also includes a deep passion for research. Gold standard research, as Secretary Kennedy also says.

But there’s another side to the President that often isn’t reflected in media reports: his deep passion for the people in his life. And he has called me frequently about the people who are calling him, as he alluded to, saying they have problems and have found relief from some of the solutions we’re discussing today. Howard Kessler, who’s standing behind me here, who’s a mutual friend of ours, was an early caller of the President. Many others have reached out as well. And Howard’s been a passionate advocate for avoiding narcotics, especially in seniors, and particularly seniors suffering from cancer.

And that’s a population that is a very important one, and it’s a sympathetic population that’s, like, that’s desires for trying new ways, besides some of the conventional approaches that have been tested by pharmaceutical companies, but have untoward side effects at the beginning of the year.

One of the first things the President told me, he doesn’t actually tell you, he’d demand from me, that my agency, CMS, use all the tools at his disposal to find a better way to help seniors. A passion for a population that has been left behind in these discussions. I promised that we would find an answer, even though it had not been done before, and today we are delivering on that promise.

“Today, our Innovation Center at CMS is announcing a new model and additional actions to give seniors access to cannabinoids.”

These are CBDs, and they’re not addictive, which many are already using to manage pain. There’s some clinical evidence that shows that CBDs provide relief from common conditions that affect Americans, including cancer symptoms, chronic pain, and a slew of other problems that disproportionately affect seniors and our veterans. And 6 in 10 people who use the CBDs report that they improve their pain. I think all of those people are judging the President based on the number of calls supporting what we’re doing today. And sometimes these decisions are difficult, and there’s a reason this hasn’t happened before, and there’s a reason, Mr. President, that every President before you has whiffed on this issue. It’s tough. And I know there’s going to be a lot of discussion about it, that’s why we’re so passionate about making it clear that this patchwork that we’re working within now, the laws and regulations, they’re leaving patients and doctors without adequate guidance on the safeguards of how to use these products, even though they’re still being used.

“At Medicare, we cover 68 million Americans, including people under the age of 65. And they did not have a way of providing these treatments until today. With the President’s insistence, that all changes. The Innovation Center models are going to allow millions of Americans on Medicare to become eligible to receive CBD as early as April of next year, and at no charge, if their doctors recommend them.”

Thanks to the hard work of the entire CMS team, especially Abe Sutton and Gita Dio at the Innovation Center, accountable care organizations in this country working in Medicare will be able to provide these products again at no cost to patients.

“Medicare Advantage insurers, and we’ve been calling them, are also agreeing to consider CBD to be used for the 34 million Americans that they cover. If you can hear my voice and you’re over 65, you should pay attention to this executive order, because it’s going to touch your life.”

“Again, this all becomes active after the first quarter of next year. These CBD products must first meet local and state quality and safety standards. They must come from legitimate sources. They must abide by the other regulations of those states. With these boxes checked, patients can be eligible for up to $500 of hemp-derived products each year. This is the first government-led testing of quality and outcomes for patients across different conditions, and it delivers on the need for more data collection and research into hemp usage.”

“CMS is going to collect data, that’s our job, on the patients that are being given these products by their physicians, and in accordance with all the privacy and security regulations, we’re going to analyze that data, we’re going to make it publicly available to everybody to be able to analyze with us. If it shows promise, we will expand access to these products to even more conditions amongst Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. “

FDA Commissioner, Dr. Marty Makary: We want a lot of companies that are doing this research to approach the FDA for formal approval. That is the right way to move forward. And Jay Bhattasharia, who’s hiding in the back, he rarely hides, but Jay runs NIH, and he’s agreed to support initiatives to study the data that we’re collecting.

 I thank you again, from the bottom of my heart, for taking a difficult stance. Thank you very much.” Mr. President, members of the Cabinet, thank you so much for the opportunity to be here, and for your leadership in rescheduling cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3.

“This decision will accelerate scientific research and expand what can responsibly be studied.”

I’m Dr. Ilana Braun, a cancer psychiatrist and medical cannabis researcher at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over the past decade, federal investment in research has helped transform cancer care. People are living longer than ever before. But cancer care is not only about treating the tumor, but it’s also about addressing the anxiety, the fear, the stress that can come with a diagnosis, symptoms that can interfere with treatment and make recovery much more difficult.

Many medications we use for acute anxiety carry significant risks, particularly in older adults. That’s why we’re studying specific natural compounds found in cannabis, including the non-addictive cannabidiol, to understand whether they can safely and effectively help manage anxiety during cancer treatment. Rescheduling allows us to ask these questions rigorously about dosing, about safety, and who may benefit most.

“This research reflects the best of federal investment, helping people not only live longer, but live better. Thank you, Mr. President, for supporting careful, science-based research that puts patients first. Thank you. Thank you, Doug.”

Duke University’s Dr. David Casarett: “I’ll add my vote of thanks, Mr. President. I never really thought this day would come. I met a patient about 20 years ago, a retired professor named Elizabeth, who came to my clinic. She was dying of pancreatic cancer, and she asked me then whether cannabis might help her. And I said no, because that’s what I learned in medical school. She reached into her briefcase, took out a 3-inch tall stack of articles, put them down on my desk, and said, “Really? Doctor? You should read these. You might learn something.” I read every single article; I found several more, and I learned something. I learned that there actually is some medical benefit to cannabis that I had not anticipated, never heard about in medical school.

Second, I learned that there was a lot we don’t know. And third, I learned it’s really, really, really difficult to do high-quality, randomized controlled trials of a substance that’s federally illegal.

“Rescheduling has the potential to change all of that, and to rewrite the way that we do research related to cannabis in the United States in three ways. First of all, it’ll democratize the research process so that all academic institutions can participate in research, not just elite academic medical centers. Number two, it’ll give patients and researchers access to highly refined, reliable sources of cannabis, rather than relying on one or two sources around the country. And last but not least, it’ll let us do the sorts of large-scale randomized controlled trials that we do in oncology and cardiology. Not dozens of patients, but hundreds or thousands of patients. That’s how we learn, that’s how we produce valuable knowledge that’s useful in guiding treatment decisions.”

Mr. President, I am Dan Wiley, National Commander of the American Legion, representing 1.5 million veterans. We are the largest veterans organization. We have 2.5 million members of our American Legion family. Thank you for your leadership on this issue. This issue is extremely important to the American Legion, and I want to thank you on behalf of the veterans who will benefit from the research. I also want to thank you for your VA Secretary, Secretary Collins, and his work on difficult veterans issues with us this past year. The VA has worked with us on our mission to fight the epidemic of veteran suicide.

“Veterans are disproportionately affected by conditions such as PTSD, TBI, depression, and chronic pain. And with this reclassification, it will allow research to be conducted with regard to cannabis. There is anecdotal evidence that cannabis benefits these conditions, and now we’ll have an opportunity to see if research does prove that it is effective.”

And if it is so, then it’ll open up a whole new method of treatment for our veterans with regard to this particular issue. And so, again, I just want to thank you for your leadership and, on behalf of the American Legion, for this executive order, which will help the many people who have suffered and will suffer much less now.

I’m Nora Volkow, I’m the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and for us, rescheduling accelerates the rate at which we can conduct research and discovery. And research is crucial in order for us to, for example, understand what may be, and for whom, the dangers of cannabis. Yes, cannabis can be addictive, and adolescents and children may be the most vulnerable. Still, we cannot close our eyes to research and the opportunity that we are hearing from patients, that for some of them, cannabis can solve their problem.

So, first, we need to conduct research to understand those conditions. Number two, in order to be able to learn how to use it optimally, and to understand, number three, what is the danger? And it is knowledge that will allow us to benefit optimally.

Take the benefits behind cannabis, as research shows, but on the other hand, enable us to do prevention interventions to protect those who are most vulnerable.

Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.: Mr. President, thank you for your leadership and vision, and for finally reaching a closure on this issue. This is a scientific question that has divided our country for many years, and there are valid claims on both sides. On one side, the patients and physicians attached to cannabinoids and THC can have miraculous effects on chronic pain, on epilepsy, on PTSD, and on chemotherapy-induced nausea.

My friend Howard Kessler, without whom we wouldn’t be here today, has driven this change in the schedule because of his experience mitigating the impacts of chemotherapy; he has nothing to gain from this. He saw something that worked for him and thousands of other Americans, and he wants to make it available to them.

On the other side, there are valid claims about the negative impacts, about addiction, about psychosis, about adverse public health impacts, and impacts particularly on young people, which we haven’t been able to verify. The evidence on all of these is anecdotal and hypothetical because we have not been able to do scientific studies. There is no standardized dosing. And if you don’t have standardized dosing, any study that you do is comparing apples to pears. We don’t know the difference between botanicals and synthetics, and we’ll now be able to answer all of these questions.

The prior administration promised to act on this issue. The Biden administration promised to do this, but the proposal became mired in chaos, inertia, and disorganization. I want to thank President Trump, who promised during the 2024 election that he would come in, solve this issue, and take decisive action, and he has kept that promise today. Thank you, President Trump, for your vision; as a result, we will have answers very soon. This will finally allow us to study this issue and to answer these questions for the American people.

Howard Kessler: I just want to help people 65 and over and make a difference in their lives. And we have machines and talent that could do it, not in 8-year clinical trials, but in a year. We’re going to prove that, and it may change the way healthcare works. So thank you, Mr. President.

President Trump, as he signed the Executive Order to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, said, ” It’s an honor to do this.”

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