--- title: DEA Chief Says Medical Marijuana Is a 'Joke' description: DEA chief Chuck Rosenberg said the idea that marijuana can be used as medicine is a "joke" canonical: https://time.com/4101340/dea-medical-marijuana-joke/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-05T14:33:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:57:14.454Z article:section: Health og:title: DEA Chief Says Medical Marijuana Is a 'Joke' og:description: "It has never been shown to be safe or effective as a medicine" og:url: https://time.com/4101340/dea-medical-marijuana-joke/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt91069b74cbb9f428/698867e6196cf4f7a50387ba/149251746.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Los Angeles City Council Votes To Ban Medical Marijuana Dispensaries og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: DEA Chief Says Medical Marijuana Is a 'Joke' twitter:description: "It has never been shown to be safe or effective as a medicine" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt91069b74cbb9f428/698867e6196cf4f7a50387ba/149251746.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # DEA Chief Says Medical Marijuana Is a 'Joke' ## Video: Marijuana Legalization In Mexico Probably Won't Come Easily [Watch (HLS stream): Marijuana Legalization In Mexico Probably Won't Come Easily](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/aBXmQIeH.m3u8) (1:32)  _Published 2015-11-05. Mexico's Supreme Court has taken a first step toward marijuana legalization, but it may not be as easy as proponents hope._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Nov 5, 2015 2:33 PM UTC  LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 25: Marijuana plants grow at Perennial Holistic Wellness Center medical marijuana dispensary, which opened in 2006, on July 25, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles City Council has unanimously voted to ban storefront medical marijuana dispensaries and to order them to close or face legal action. The council also voted to instruct staff to draw up a separate ordinance for consideration in about three months that might allow dispensaries that existed before a 2007 moratorium on new dispensaries to continue to operate. It is estimated that Los Angeles has about one thousand such facilities. The ban does not prevent patients or cooperatives of two or three people to grow their own in small amounts. Californians voted to legalize medical cannabis use in 1996, clashing with federal drug laws. The state Supreme Court is expected to consider ruling on whether cities can regulate and ban dispensaries. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images) LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 25: Marijuana plants grow at Perennial Holistic Wellness Center medical marijuana dispensary, which opened in 2006, on July 25, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles City Council has unanimously voted to ban storefront medical marijuana dispensaries and to order them to close or face legal action. The council also voted to instruct staff to draw up a separate ordinance for consideration in about three months that might allow dispensaries that existed before a 2007 moratorium on new dispensaries to continue to operate. It is estimated that Los Angeles has about one thousand such facilities. The ban does not prevent patients or cooperatives of two or three people to grow their own in small amounts. Californians voted to legalize medical cannabis use in 1996, clashing with federal drug laws. The state Supreme Court is expected to consider ruling on whether cities can regulate and ban dispensaries. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)David McNew—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Nov 5, 2015 2:33 PM UTC DEA chief Chuck Rosenberg said the idea that marijuana can be used as medicine is a “joke.” “What really bothers me is the notion that marijuana is also medicinal — because it’s not,” Rosenberg said, [CBS reports](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/dea-chief-says-smoking-marijuana-as-medicine-is-a-joke/). “We can have an intellectually honest debate about whether we should legalize something that is bad and dangerous, but don’t call it medicine —that is a joke.” “There are pieces of marijuana — extracts or constituents or component parts — that have great promise” medicinally, he continued. “But if you talk about smoking the leaf of marijuana — which is what people are talking about when they talk about medicinal marijuana — it has never been shown to be safe or effective as a medicine.” 80 percent of states have passed legislation approving forms of medical marijuana. 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