DC Circuit Rejects Bid to Freeze Cannabis Rescheduling
In our latest Trade to Black podcast, presented by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell open with the weekly Vantage Standard segment, presented by Vantage, joined by chief medical officer Dr. Paul Shields. On the legal front, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit rejected an attempt by NDASA and MMJ International Holdings to freeze federal cannabis rescheduling while litigation continues, a real setback for opponents even as three consolidated lawsuits remain active.
After earlier episodes on what needs to change to fast-track the CBD pilot program, Dr. Shields this week lays out what a properly designed version would actually look like. He points to two structural flaws worth fixing: the impossibly short runway between the program’s spring announcement and its April launch, and the murky financing that asks ACOs to pre-fund up to $500 per member per year with an 18-month payback and no clear path to value. He explains why he expects the pilot to fade quietly rather than die outright — carried forward through the BEI into the 10-year LEAD program starting January 2027 — and argues that rescheduling, not this pilot, is what will finally bring pharma, double-blind trials, and standardized cannabinoid products into medicine. He also voices a real worry that a future administration could reverse the progress before enough clinical literature exists to defend it.
In segment two, Adam Stettner, CEO of FundCanna, returns for his weekly appearance to cover a trio of stories. Croptober is here, and cannabis staffing firm Vangst expects to issue 10,000 W-2s this harvest season alone, with growers needing anywhere from 10 to 200 extra workers as competition and poaching intensify industry-wide. On the legal front, the D.C. Circuit rejected an attempt by NDASA and MMJ International Holdings to freeze federal rescheduling while litigation continues — a real setback for opponents, even as three consolidated lawsuits remain active. Stettner highlights how the DOJ flipped the challengers’ financial-motive argument back on them, noting that opponents like SAM have their own pocketbook interest in keeping cannabis illegal.
And a new U.S. Census Bureau report shows states have collected more than $15.8 billion in marijuana tax revenue since Q3 2021, including $3.55 billion in the last year alone, with California, Washington State, and Michigan leading state totals. Stettner and Varrell dig into how overtaxing the legal market only feeds the illicit one, and close on why FinCEN guidance untouched since 2014 is overdue for an update — plus a brief reflection on the eve of the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
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