Pain medicine group cancels doctor training about marijuana

A national medical group has abruptly canceled plans to train doctors about marijuana for pain relief after a federal agency pulled its funding.

The American Academy of Pain Medicine on Thursday scrubbed plans for next month’s online course. Spokeswoman Megan Drumm says a request to cancel came from a federal agency.

The cancellation highlights an ongoing conflict between federal and state laws on marijuana.

The U.S. government considers marijuana a dangerous and illegal drug, but 29 states have legalized it for medical purposes. Nine states require doctors to get training before they can recommend marijuana.

There’s evidence marijuana can treat chronic pain in adults, according to a report last year from the National Academies of Sciences.