The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is proposing to add a new question to an annual health survey that would ask how often people use marijuana and whether they are doing so for specific medical reasons or if it is just “for fun or to get high.”
The agency’s proposed 2028 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) would include a query that asks, “Do you currently use marijuana every day, most days, some days, or not at all?”
Respondents can choose “every day,” “most days,” “some days” or “not at all,” and the question caveats that people should not include “CBD only products” when thinking about their answer to the question.
People who indicate that they do use marijuana on at least some days would see a follow-up question that asks, “For what reason or reasons do you use marijuana?”
They can select from:
- For fun or to get high
- Pain relief
- Nausea
- Anxiety, stress, or other mental health
- Help with sleep
- Other medical reasons
The federal health agency’s interest in people’s medical use of cannabis comes as the Trump administration is moving forward with the process of rescheduling marijuana.
Attorney General Todd Blanche in April issued an order that immediately reclassified state-licensed medical cannabis, as well as marijuana products approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to Schedule III.
Under a separate order the acting attorney general signed, a hearing is considering more comprehensively moving marijuana to Schedule III.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which is charged with defending the proposed rescheduling move, said in its final hearing brief filed last week that “marijuana no longer fits the statutory requirements for Schedule I because it has a currently accepted medical use within the United States and it has an accepted safety for its use under medical supervision.”
The agency noted that under the law it must give “significant deference” to an “extensive ten-month study on the scientific and medical properties” of cannabis conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which recommended rescheduling.
“Currently there are over 30,000 practitioners treating more than six million patients in 43 U.S. jurisdictions,” DEA said. “Such practices demonstrate that there is no longer a lack of accepted safety for use of marijuana under medical supervision, and as such, marijuana does not fulfill the requirements of being a Schedule I substance.”
It also said that there is “substantial evidence sufficient to show that marijuana’s abuse and dependency profiles better align with Schedule III substances than Schedule II” or Schedule I. “The vast majority of individuals who use marijuana do so in a manner that does not result in dangers to themselves or to their communities.”
In conclusion, DEA asked the judge overseeing the hearing to “expeditiously recommend” that marijuana be transferred from Schedule I to Schedule III.
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Meanwhile, CDC is accepting public comments on the marijuana question and other aspects of its proposed 2028 survey redesign through October 20, CDC said on its website—though a Federal Register notice says that comments “must be received on or before October 19.”
The previous 2024 version and current 2026 edition of CDC’s NHIS include a question that reads, “During the past 30 days, how often did you use marijuana or CBD products to help you fall asleep or stay asleep?”
A CDC report on the 2024 results showed that 3.7 percent of adults used marijuana or CBD products as sleep aids.
The draft 2028 NHIS that is being circulated by CDC does not include the question about CBD and sleep.
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