With a federal ban on intoxicating hemp products officially signed into law , November saw the most consequential change in U.S. drug policy in decades—and people truly interested in fighting for public health should recognize this for the great victory it is.

Intoxicating hemp—which contains addictive chemicals linked by the FDA to everything from heart issues to nausea —was only ever legal for sale in the U.S. because of a legislative error in the 2018 Farm Bill. That mistake created a grey zone into which a brand-new addiction-for-profit industry promptly swooped. Their chief products were edibles and drinks packed with hemp-derived THC, chiefly the psychoactive delta-8 THC, which is nearly identical to the component of marijuana that produces a high, delta-9 THC.

Within two yea

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