RFK Jr. confirmed to head HHS – where does he stand on cannabis policy?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been confirmed by the Senate as the new Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Kennedy has a long track record of supporting drug policy reform, including cannabis reform, and has often spoken about his own struggles with substance abuse. During his candidacy for President, he said that if elected, he would "decriminalize cannabis at the federal level", and that states should be able to decide their own cannabis laws without federal interference. In an appearance on C-SPAN months later, he went even further when he called for federally legalizing marijuana and instituting a tax to fund drug rehabilitation and treatment centers.

However, since being nominated by President Trump to lead HHS, he has been less clear about his plans for supporting federal cannabis reform. In fact, his most recent comments on cannabis suggest that he may be changing his tune on actively supporting federal cannabis decriminalization and legalization. When asked during his Senate confirmation hearings if he would commit to working with the DOJ and DEA to resume the process of rescheduling marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, he stated that he would "defer to the DOJ and DEA on the allocation of their resources and the development of their priorities."

In his first post-confirmation interview on Fox News, Kennedy remarked that, "I hear stories all the time of the impacts of marijuana on people—and the really catastrophic impacts on them." However, he also acknowledged that state legalization efforts can help open opportunities to conduct more research on the health impacts and medical efficacy of cannabis.

How Kennedy will choose to engage with federal cannabis policy as HHS secretary remains to be seen. While his long-standing support for drug policy reform is encouraging, his seeming inclination to defer to Congress and other federal agencies on key issues regarding cannabis policies bring into question whether he will ultimately act as a reliable ally in the fight to end federal cannabis prohibition.

MPP will continue to monitor administration officials' statements and actions regarding cannabis policy, and will use all means at our disposal to push for comprehensive federal cannabis legalization that respects state laws and the rights of all Americans.