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Mental health agency updates controlled-substances schedules to mirror federal changes
Summary
The Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services presented annual amendments to controlled-substance schedules, aligning state schedules with recent DEA actions and federal scheduling; committee approved the package with technical Q&A about synthetic cannabinoids.
Angela Jackson of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services presented the department's annual controlled-substances schedule updates. She told the committee the department reviews federal DEA scheduling actions and consults with the Department of Health, Board of Pharmacy and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation when drafting the annual rules.
Jackson said the rules are prepared as a point-in-time package and that any federal scheduling actions after the filing date will be considered in the next annual update. Chief pharmacist Dr. Wes Gimmons described "cannabimetic" agents as synthetics that "are meant to mime, cannabis" and said scheduling follows federal 8‑factor criteria. Committee members asked whether the state will automatically add derivatives; the department said it follows federal scheduling and adopts changes into state rule during the annual update process.
The committee voted to recommend the schedule amendments for a positive recommendation.
