The mission of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is to ensure safe and legal access to cannabis (marijuana) for therapeutic uses and research. ASA works with our grassroots base of over 50,000 members to effect change using public education and direct advocacy at the local, state, and federal level. 

Until ASA stood up for access, the national debate around medical cannabis was focused solely on the legality and ethics of arresting and prosecuting patients for cannabis use. That experience is real, but reflected only a fraction of the experiences that patients and this community were having on a daily basis. ASA brought the patient's voice to the table, and we shifted the debate to the real concerns of patients: legal access to medicine and patients' civil rights. 

We created a vision for what safe access should look like, and the legal framework to support that vision through the passage of state and local laws and numerous court battles. Our extensive monitoring of  implementation has helped thousands of patients to navigate the legal system, held law enforcement accountable for their actions, and established major policy changes. On Capitol Hill, we have fought back against attempts to further undermine our state laws, and we continue to work with members of Congress and the Administration to resolve the federal conflict. 

Cultivating a thorough understanding of the complex realities "on the ground" has been the key to catalyzing empowerment and collective action. We cannot create good policy without including the voices and experiences of patients and those who provide them with access to care. That is what ASA members have brought to this movement and that is what we can bring to the states and country as a whole.

To learn more check out Americans for Safe Access's website: www.americansforsafeaccess.org