Sanjay Gupta, chief medical correspondent at CNN, is described in his bio on the CNN website as a practicing neurosurgeon and winner of multiple Emmy awards.  He worked as a White House Fellow and was a special advisor to then First Lady Hillary Clinton.  After coming to CNN, he covered health impacts after devastating natural disasters and he was personally passionate about encouraging Americans to live healthier, more active lives.

In 2009, Time Magazine reports that he was selected to be the Surgeon General by President Obama.  However, controversy surrounded his consideration and, in March 2009, he withdrew himself from consideration, ABC News reported.  His media work had resulted in backlash that questioned his qualifications, accused him of being inappropriately associated with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and highlighted controversial statements that he had made.

Now, Dr. Gupta is taking a new position on a controversial area – medical marijuana.  In his own article on the CNN website, Gupta discusses what resulted in him changing his position on the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.  He has been working for the past year on a documentary entitled “Weed,” which included speaking to experts, medical leaders, and patients.  With the majority of major studies focusing on negative effects and barriers to research on medical benefits, Dr. Gupta argues that the public is being systematically misled.  Apologizing for not doing his part to dig deeper, he now sees the benefits in considering marijuana as a potential part of medical therapy for patients.

This is a major departure from his 2009 article in Time Magazine, which came on the cusp of Colorado and Nevada considering ballot initiatives to legalize the personal use of marijuana.  That article explained that his vote would be against legalization.  To support his position, he cited the major studies that he now criticizes as misleading.

According to ProCon, a non-profit that follows the issue of medical marijuana, twenty states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana.  California was the first state to decriminalize, with Illinois the most recent addition.  There are restrictions on legalization, including a registration fee in some states and limits on possession.  Legalization came into effect in various ways, with some states using a ballot initiative and others passing it through the legislature.

The Vanderbilt Law Review points out that the legal environment between state and federal jurisdiction is complex, especially with the decriminalization of marijuana.  However, as more public figures come out in support of medical marijuana, the issue will be pushed.  Whether or not the federal government will challenge these assertions of state authority remains to be seen.