So many who have served our country often carry invisible wounds. These wounds do not always show up in scans or lab results — but they manifest in sleepless nights, chronic pain, flashbacks and so much more. As a combat veteran and nurse and in my roles as director of research and development at Frontline Defense Supplements and a team member at We The People Health and Wellness, I see every day how desperate we are for better, safer treatment options. For many veterans, cannabis has offered alternative pathways to healing when conventional medicine has failed them.

However, cannabis remains a Schedule I substance, lumped in with heroin and LSD — deemed to have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. This classification is not just outdated; it’s dangerous. It blocks access to healing options for patients and stifles critical research that could transform lives and public health outcomes. Veterans are often left to navigate their struggles with limited tools, while a promising treatment remains unnecessarily restricted.

That is why I strongly support the rescheduling of cannabis to Schedule III, which President Donald Trump has also expressed his support for. Doing so would reflect what countless veterans and health-care professionals already know: cannabis has legitimate medical applications, especially for pain, PTSD, anxiety and sleep disorders. For veterans navigating the VA system, this shift could be life-saving.

Many veterans are desperate for alternatives to traditional medications such as opioids and benzodiazepines — drugs that come with high risks of dependency, overdose and dangerous side effects. In contrast, many have found a solution in cannabis-based treatments. But because of its Schedule I status, VA doctors are forbidden from recommending or even discussing cannabis, leaving patients to navigate a legal and medical gray zone on their own, often turning to unreliable sources for information, access and even unsafe products.

Rescheduling to Schedule III would not just ease patient access — it would also open the floodgates for research. Right now, scientists must jump through nearly impossible hoops to study cannabis under Schedule I restrictions. The result? We have anecdotal evidence but not enough clinical data to guide evidence-based practice, leaving health-care providers with limited confidence and patients with limited support and resources. Removing these barriers would allow the medical community to fully explore the potential of cannabis under regulated, ethical and scientifically rigorous conditions.

Let’s be clear: patients should always come first. Veterans, in particular, deserve access to every possible tool that would help them heal and improve their quality of life. By moving cannabis to Schedule III, we legitimize its therapeutic potential and bring it into the light of medical professionalism, safety and oversight.

This isn’t about politics or profits. This is about people. It’s about honoring the service of veterans not just with words, but with policies that reflect science, compassion and common sense.

Leaders in our federal agencies must follow President Trump’s lead and reschedule cannabis.  Let’s make healing more accessible. And let’s remove obstacles to the care that so many veterans already know can help.

Laura Hartman is a former VA psychiatric nurse who serves as director of research and development at Frontline Defense Supplements, works at We The People Health and Wellness in Venice and sits on the leadership board of Veterans Education Tour.