Anti-Drug Abuse Acts

Anti-Drug Abuse Acts of the 1900s

The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 was one of the first acts for preventing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated or misbranded drugs or medicines. This act required that the U.S. Department of Agriculture be responsible for determining if any drug had been adulterated or misbranded within the meaning of the act. The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 was little more than a “quality control” measure; it ensured that drugs had the proper labels, strength, and purity.

Around the same time as passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act, Congress passed the Opium Exclusion Act of 1909, which restricted the importation of opium from the Philippines. The Opium Exclusion Act of 1909 was the first antinarcotics law created with the idea of restricting use of a drug. The anti-drug abuse acts that soon followed were aimed more at taxing drugs and controlling who could distribute them rather than preventing the use of them.

The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act of 1914 imposed a special tax on all persons who produced, imported, or manufactured opium or coca leaves or derivatives. The act required persons who qualified within the description of the act to register and pay a special tax at the rate of $1 per annum. Moreover, the act made it illegal for any person not registered under the provisions of the act to be in possession or in control of any drug named within the act. With the Harrison Act, the government started a more formal system of tracking drugs such as opium and coca.

Like the Harrison Act, the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 imposed a small tax on all persons who dealt in the manufacture, sale, or distribution of marijuana. Furthermore, the Marijuana Act made it unlawful for any person who was not registered to possess, sell, or distribute marijuana. Unlike the Harrison Act, the Marijuana Act carried large fines and prison sentences for violation of the act. Moreover, physicians who prescribed marijuana were required to report all patient information to the federal government. If a physician failed to report patient information, then the physician and the patient would be subject to prosecution under the Marijuana Act.

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