AMA House Approves Several Public-Health Measures, Including on Cannabis Use

The AMA House of Delegates this morning approved a report by the AMA's Council on Science and Public Health (CSPH) urging the formation of a comprehensive national policy on drug abuse and specifically advising that the federal government and the public should acknowledge that federal efforts to address illicit drug use via supply reduction and enforcement have been ineffective. The report calls for research to determine the consequences of long-term cannabis use, especially among youth and adolescents, and supports the modification of state and federal laws to emphasize public-health strategies to reduce cannabis use. (Pictured at left is psychiatrist Kenneth Certa, M.D., who chaired the reference committee that heard testimony on the CSPH report and helped refine it.)

The CSPH report was one of several public-health-related actions taken by the House of Delegates on the last day of its Interim Meeting. Other subjects addressed were gun-safety counseling in undergraduate medical education, athlete concussion management and chronic traumatic encephalopathy prevention, promoting health awareness and preventive screenings for individuals with disabilities, and providing culturally competent mental health care for at-risk communities. Look for further coverage of these subjects in upcoming Psychiatric News issues.

New APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., also took advantage of the occasion to meet with other specialty society leaders to plan strategy around common goals. To hear a brief audio conversation with Levin click here.

(photo: Mark Moran/Psychiatric News)