In our current culture, healthcare is constantly evolving. During this evolution, many drugs that were created to treat a particular disease state are discovered to have multiple uses. When a physician prescribes a patient a drug to treat an ailment that the drug is currently not indicated for, this is called off-label. This occurs when the physician prescribes a drug that will provide a direct benefit to the patient even though the treatment is not recognized or approved through the FDA.
Marijuana has been used for centuries as early as 2900BC worldwide. During the early years, marijuana was used for various reasons including health, religious and spiritual reasons. In 1851, marijuana was added to the US Pharmacopeia which listed marijuana
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In 1911 Massachusetts was the first state to ban cannabis. Maine, Wyoming, Indiana, New York City, Utah, Vermont, Colorado and Nevada soon followed over the next 10 year period. By the end of 1936, other states passed marijuana prohibition laws which then led to the all states in the union having anti-marijuana laws established. During this same time period, pharmaceutical companies are incorporating marijuana into their drug products for their efficacious use. Parke-Davis and Eli Lilly were two drug manufacturers who created products using marijuana for analgesics, sedatives and antispasmodics . In August 2, 1937, the Senate and the House of Representatives of the US Congress assembled and passed the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, which did not prohibit the use of marijuana however it imposed a tax of approximately one dollar on all persons who use, sell, buy, produce, and prescribe marijuana to others. The American Medical Association (AMA) opposed the act, recognizing the health benefits derived from marijuana. In 1942, marijuana was removed from the US Pharmacopeia. In 1970, Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act which classified marijuana as a Schedule I which includes drugs that have high potential for abuse without any currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical