Legislation

Don’t Miss This Critical Moment: The House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Georgia’s Medical Marijuana and Hemp Policies Meets TOMORROW! Rep. Mark Newton Chairman of the House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Georgia’s Medical Marijuana and Hemp Policies Key Highlights Date: Friday, October 24th Time: 10:30am...

Dear GSAM Members, The Georgia Society of Addiction Medicine (GSAM) is now accepting nominations for our GSAM 2025–2027 Committee Volunteers through September 4 at 11:59 PM ET. Your committees play a vital role in shaping GSAM’s strategy and guiding the direction of our chapter. This is your opportunity to help shape the future of our chapter by nominating yourself or a colleague for...

Download PDF Version Here Scroll down to the bottom of this article to leave your feedback Note: To prevent SPAM, all comments are held in moderation for administrative approval August __, 2025 To the Honorable Members of the Georgia General Assembly Georgia is witnessing the fastest shift in marijuana* availability in its history. Georgians for Responsible Marijuana...

By: Arthur Caplan, PhD The House has passed the Trump administration’s sweeping domestic agenda bill, which experts said will have massive implications for health care in the United States. The legislation, known as the “Big Beautiful Bill,” was signed into law on July 4. The bill includes tax cuts and increased funding for defense, immigration enforcement and energy production....

In January 2025, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) introduced a proposed rule that could significantly reshape how addiction medicine is delivered across the country. Designed under the authority of the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act, the rule lays the groundwork for allowing certain controlled substances to be prescribed via telemedicine—without requiring...

Overview of the Final Rule The DEA and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a final rule titled “Expansion of Buprenorphine Treatment via Telemedicine Encounter” on January 17, 2025. This rule permits DEA-registered practitioners to prescribe buprenorphine, a Schedule III controlled substance approved by the FDA for treating opioid use disorder (OUD), through...

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) just released a new regulation temporarily extending the COVID-era flexibilities for prescribing controlled substances via telemedicine. This third extension continues the “full set” of telemedicine prescribing flexibilities, referencing the two DEA letters that authorized telemedicine waivers, with a new expiration date of December 31, 2025....

Today’s Supreme Court decision is a giant step toward finally implementing graphic cigarette warnings in the United States. Graphic warnings are a best-practice policy, and they are long-overdue in the United States. These warnings were first required by Congress in 2009 and have been repeatedly delayed by tobacco industry legal challenges. The graphic warnings will show and tell the...

In 2023, in response to a set of proposed telemedicine rules, DEA received more than 38,000 comments and held two days of public listening sessions. In light of that feedback and discussion, and to give DEA time to consider a new path forward for telemedicine, DEA and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) extended current telemedicine flexibilities through the end of 2024....

A new rule posted on the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) registry suggests that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is planning an additional extension of COVID-19 flexibilities for telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances, beyond the current expiration date of December 31, 2024. A new rule posted on the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) registry suggests that...

Georgians for Responsible Marijuana Policy: Important Marijuana Study Committee Hearing Tomorrow

Submit Your Electronic Nomination Today for the GSAM 2025–2027 Committee Volunteers

Georgians for Responsible Marijuana Policy (GRMP)- Proposed Letter to Georgia General Assembly

Trump signs ‘Big Beautiful Bill’: Here’s what it means for health care

Proposed DEA Rule Expands Access to Telemedicine for Addiction Treatment

Expansion of Buprenorphine Treatment via Telemedicine Encounter

New DEA Rule Extends Controlled Substance Telemedicine Prescribing Flexibilities One More Year

In Victory for Public Health, U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Tobacco Industry’s Challenge to Graphic Cigarette Warnings

DEA and HHS Extend Telemedicine Flexibilities through 2025

Pending DEA Extension on Prescription of Controlled Substances via Telemedicine

The Georgia Society of Addiction Medicine