CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta apologized Wednesday for publicly opposing marijuana legalization, saying there was "no scientific basis" to claim marijuana had no medical benefits.
"I think we have been terribly and systematically misled in this country for some time, and I did part of that misleading," he said.
Gupta, a neurosurgeon, told CNN host Piers Morgan that research in the U.S. focused on negative effects of the drug, while studies from the rest of the world have shown evidence of marijuana's benefits.
He noted the high rates of prescription drug deaths, and said, "I couldn’t find one documented case of someone dying of a marijuana overdose."