The U.S. Patent Office issued patent #6630507 to the U.S.Health and Human Services filed on 2/2/2001. The patent lists the use of certain cannabinoids found within the cannabis sativa plant as useful in certain neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and HIV dementia.

Since cannabis sativa (or marijuana as we like to refer to it) contains compounds recognized and endorsed by an agency of the U.S. government why is it that marijuana remains on the Federal Schedule One list of drugs? The issuance of patent #6630507 is a direct contradiction of the governments own definition for classification of a Schedule 1 drug.

I guess the bigger question may be why hasn’t Norml or some other legal entity sued the Feds to have marijuana removed from the Schedule 1 list based on this patent granted?