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JANUARY 18, 2016

Controlled Substance Classifications Vary Widely Around the Globe

Las Vegas—A new paper provides the first compendium of controlled substance classification systems around the world, revealing a broad spectrum of regulations but little consensus as to what works best.

The investigators reviewed the controlled substances regulations in 23 countries, and found they each have between two and 15 controlled substance schedules (see Figure). Most have between two and 10. The regulations are varied, to say the least: Portugal, one of the few countries in