494
Opinion of the Court
Finally, the Cooperative contends that we should construe the Controlled Substances Act to include a medical necessity defense in order to avoid what it considers to be difficult constitutional questions. In particular, the Cooperative asserts that, shorn of a medical necessity defense, the statute exceeds Congress' Commerce Clause powers, violates the substantive due process rights of patients, and offends the fundamental liberties of the people under the Fifth, Ninth, and Tenth Amendments. As the Cooperative acknowledges, however, the canon of constitutional avoidance has no application in the absence of statutory ambiguity. Because we have no doubt that the Controlled Substances Act cannot bear a medical necessity defense to distributions of marijuana, we do not find guidance in this avoidance principle. Nor do we consider the underlying constitutional issues today. Because the Court of Appeals did not address these claims, we decline to do so in the first instance.
For these reasons, we hold that medical necessity is not a defense to manufacturing and distributing marijuana.7 The
Act cannot sustain the medical necessity defense, we need not consider whether the 1998 "sense of the Congress resolution" is additional evidence of a legislative determination to eliminate the defense.
7 Lest there be any confusion, we clarify that nothing in our analysis, or the statute, suggests that a distinction should be drawn between the prohibitions on manufacturing and distributing and the other prohibitions in the Controlled Substances Act. Furthermore, the very point of our holding is that there is no medical necessity exception to the prohibitions at issue, even when the patient is "seriously ill" and lacks alternative avenues for relief. Indeed, it is the Cooperative's argument that its patients are "seriously ill," see, e. g., Brief for Respondents 11, 13, 17, and lacking "alternatives," see, e. g., id., at 13. We reject the argument that these factors warrant a medical necessity exception. If we did not, we would be affirming instead of reversing the Court of Appeals.
Finally, we share Justice Stevens' concern for "showing respect for the sovereign States that comprise our Federal Union." Post, at 502 (opinion concurring in judgment). However, we are "construing an Act of Congress, not drafting it." United States v. Bailey, 444 U. S. 394, 415, n. 11 (1980). Because federal courts interpret, rather than author, the
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