Dear Chair Rodgers, Chairman Sanders, and Ranking Members Pallone and Cassidy:
On behalf of 45 million American caregivers, veterans, seniors, and more – who rely on the benefits of cannabidiol (CBD) products every day, I write to thank you for your continued focus on the need to allow hemp-derived CBD in dietary supplements, and to offer our Coalition’s wholehearted support for your information gathering and legislative processes. The time is now – this year – to finally pass legislation, H.R. 1629 and S. 2451, providing for dietary supplement regulation of CBD.
While our Coalition comments will not respond to the specific questions in the Committees’ Request forInformation (RFI), we can speak to the daily benefits of CBD to Americans who rely on CBD products for an improved quality of life, including chronic pain, insomnia, anxiety and PTSD, general wellness, and an alternative to opioids (in particular). These consumers deserve the confidence that comes with independent safety testing, accurate labeling and adverse event reporting required by dietary supplements regulation.
The Coalition is joined by many of the largest organizations representing Americans with chronic pain, veterans of war, professional athletes, and families seeking solutions. Partners include, among many others, the American Legion (the largest wartime veterans service organization with 12,000 posts throughout America representing 2 million veterans), the U.S. Pain Foundation (the largest voice for people with pain – constituting 51 million Americans), the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America(IAVA)(the nation’s largest veterans’ services organization devoted to volunteer service members – with a membership of more than 425,000 active veterans and civilian supporters in all 50 states), Realm ofCaring (the largest CBD
The CBD movement began thirteen years ago when my daughter Charlotte was facing certain death from the effects of a catastrophic form of epilepsy after failing all pharmaceutical seizure medications.She was suffering more than 1200 grand mal seizures a month, literally seizing around the clock.Desperate for any solution and based on my research, I approached a local hemp grower and asked if they could grow low-THC hemp to very particular specifications for safety and efficacy. Using CBD oil extracted from the hemp plant, Charlotte’s seizures all but stopped after her first dose, she was removed from life support, regained life skills, and for nine years never visited a hospital nor took another drug.
The Coalition is joined by many of the largest organizations representing Americans with chronic pain, veterans of war, professional athletes, and families seeking solutions. Partners include, among many others, the American Legion (the largest wartime veterans service organization with 12,000 posts throughout America representing 2 million veterans), the U.S. Pain Foundation (the largest voice for people with pain – constituting 51 million Americans), the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America(IAVA)(the nation’s largest veterans’ services organization devoted to volunteer service members – with a membership of more than 425,000 active veterans and civilian supporters in all 50 states), Realm ofCaring (the largest CBD advocacy organization, pioneering acceptance and access to improve quality of life across the nation and globe), and the Balanced Veterans Network (BVN)(an organization dedicated to alternative therapies to combat veteran issues plaguing veterans).
When word spread to other parents facing similar challenges, thousands uprooted their families and moved to states where they could access this CBD oil. This launched a movement that ultimately led toCBD being de-scheduled in the 2018 Farm Bill and made available in all 50 states. That legislation retained the authority of the FDA to finish the last mile by establishing a regulatory framework for CBD products as dietary supplements – which has not happened.
The data clearly demonstrates the safety of CBD products – a fact validated by the tens of millions ofAmericans who consume CBD products every day. These Americans do not need a new, costly, burdensome, and unnecessary pharmaceutical-like regulatory FDA regime. The result would be increased cost and decreased access to CBD products with no additional benefit to consumers.
Our Coalition and partners have spent the last year meeting with members of your committees and beyond and have not received anything but full support. The only resistance to CBD legislation appears to be from voices of organizations that seek to reignite a debate on larger marijuana issues.
We look forward to swift consideration of the RFI responses and long overdue passage of legislation that will finally give millions of Americans the consistency of quality and access to CBD products they deserve. One in seven Americans in your districts and states rely on CBD products. The Committees have a tremendous opportunity to work together to deliver for these Americans before the end of the session.
Sincerely,
Paige Figi
Executive Director
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