Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Amanda Gammisch wasn't sure where to start when she became interested in medical marijuana after a brain cancer diagnosis. Her primary care doctor in St. Petersburg didn't know much about it. Neither did her oncologist.
Her chances shrank even more when she moved to New Smyrna Beach from the Tampa Bay area in April. There were only three doctors registered to recommend marijuana for medical use in Volusia County at the time. One physician had stopped practicing medicine; another wasn't accepting new patients.
There was but one other family medicine practitioner, Dr. Joseph Rosado in Orange City, who agreed last summer to take Gammisch, 36, into his care. The odds of finding such a doctor willing to experiment with the drug in Volusia and Flagler counties has changed little. Today, there are seven physicians permitted to recommend medicinal marijuana, but even fewer are seeing patients.
"I don't really know what the individual risks are to the individual doctor as far as their patient practice goes," Gammisch said. "I have the feeling that more people are going to be willing to work with patients or willing to become certified because there are going to be more people looking for these medicines."
Physicians' scant enthusiasm is perhaps one other indicator of the medical community's slow embrace of the controversial substance, a factor state lawmakers will likely take into account when they write rules for expanded use during the legislative session next year.
Voters approved a constitutional amendment by an overwhelming majority last month, agreeing to give more patients the option of using medical marijuana treatment for a broad range of conditions.
But the issue still forms a dividing line in the medical community with many doctors choosing to wait until research efforts catch up with the shift in cultural norms. That was the position of the Florida Medical Association, which opposed using it or even calling marijuana medicine.
Legal experts say it's an uncharted area for many physicians. It's definitely not a clear-cut area of the law, said Sunai Edwards, a lawyer at GrayRobinson in Tampa, which represents one of Florida's six marijuana dispensaries.
"There's scant case law," Edwards said. "Every state has a patchwork network of different regulations and laws - and they're changing all the time."
Legally, the state draws a distinction between medical cannabis and low-THC marijuana.
Edwards said the full-strength cannabis is considered an "investigational drug" and the state holds patients liable for using it. With low-THC marijuana, the non-euphoric alternative, the burden is heavier for doctors, who must tell patients about current research, or lack thereof; about medically acceptable alternatives; and any risks and side effects, she said.
Amendment 2 goes into effect Jan. 3, triggering a change in a large part of the pre-existing statute, Edwards said.
The ballot measure, which passed with 71 percent of the vote, expanded the number of eligible conditions to include post-traumatic stress disorder, epilepsy, HIV, AIDS, ALS, Parkinson's disease, Crohn's disease, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis and other "debilitating medical conditions as determined by a licensed Florida physician."
Some doctors are already seeing a surge of interest.
Dr. Brent Schlapper, who runs a small practice focusing on addiction medicine in DeLand, said he received some 50 inquiries about marijuana treatment the day after the amendment passed. The semi-retired osteopathic physician said the response caught him and his assistant off guard. He only became certified to treat patients with marijuana in late October.
"This is something that's always intrigued me, and it goes right along with my addiction practice," Schlapper said.
Some callers were dismayed to learn that state law first requires a doctor-patient relationship of at least 90 days, he said. But about a dozen of them became patients. Schlapper said he expanded his business hours recently to focus on medical marijuana patients one day out of the week.
If patient interest remains high, Schlapper isn't sure how many he will take on. But he noted that since patients usually receive a 45-day supply, it wouldn't require a lot of face time unless a serious issue arises.
The state decides who can dispense marijuana; the strength; and what forms patients can receive it. Physicians must also submit quarterly treatment plans to the University of Florida College of Pharmacy or whenever the plan changes.
"This is obviously a new standard of care that's just been introduced by the state," Schlapper said. "In my almost 40 years of experience, I don't think there's ever been a state-run standard of care, per se."
There's a flip side to the issue. Opponents argue there's so little scientific research on medical marijuana that it's not fair to call it medicine yet.
Dr. Andria Klioze, an internal medicine doctor who works at a local Veterans Affairs medical center, said rigorous trials are needed to determine how the drug interacts with others, and if there is more harm than good over time.
"There are studies that are being done at the University of Florida right now, and I know there was a guy that was doing studies out of Israel," she said. "But one person and one institution is not enough to make an approval for a drug."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Medical Marijuana - No Easy Choice For Volusia, Flagler Physicians
Author: Mike Finch II
Contact: 386-252-1511
Photo Credit: Seth Perlman
Website: The Daytona Beach News-Journal
Her chances shrank even more when she moved to New Smyrna Beach from the Tampa Bay area in April. There were only three doctors registered to recommend marijuana for medical use in Volusia County at the time. One physician had stopped practicing medicine; another wasn't accepting new patients.
There was but one other family medicine practitioner, Dr. Joseph Rosado in Orange City, who agreed last summer to take Gammisch, 36, into his care. The odds of finding such a doctor willing to experiment with the drug in Volusia and Flagler counties has changed little. Today, there are seven physicians permitted to recommend medicinal marijuana, but even fewer are seeing patients.
"I don't really know what the individual risks are to the individual doctor as far as their patient practice goes," Gammisch said. "I have the feeling that more people are going to be willing to work with patients or willing to become certified because there are going to be more people looking for these medicines."
Physicians' scant enthusiasm is perhaps one other indicator of the medical community's slow embrace of the controversial substance, a factor state lawmakers will likely take into account when they write rules for expanded use during the legislative session next year.
Voters approved a constitutional amendment by an overwhelming majority last month, agreeing to give more patients the option of using medical marijuana treatment for a broad range of conditions.
But the issue still forms a dividing line in the medical community with many doctors choosing to wait until research efforts catch up with the shift in cultural norms. That was the position of the Florida Medical Association, which opposed using it or even calling marijuana medicine.
Legal experts say it's an uncharted area for many physicians. It's definitely not a clear-cut area of the law, said Sunai Edwards, a lawyer at GrayRobinson in Tampa, which represents one of Florida's six marijuana dispensaries.
"There's scant case law," Edwards said. "Every state has a patchwork network of different regulations and laws - and they're changing all the time."
Legally, the state draws a distinction between medical cannabis and low-THC marijuana.
Edwards said the full-strength cannabis is considered an "investigational drug" and the state holds patients liable for using it. With low-THC marijuana, the non-euphoric alternative, the burden is heavier for doctors, who must tell patients about current research, or lack thereof; about medically acceptable alternatives; and any risks and side effects, she said.
Amendment 2 goes into effect Jan. 3, triggering a change in a large part of the pre-existing statute, Edwards said.
The ballot measure, which passed with 71 percent of the vote, expanded the number of eligible conditions to include post-traumatic stress disorder, epilepsy, HIV, AIDS, ALS, Parkinson's disease, Crohn's disease, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis and other "debilitating medical conditions as determined by a licensed Florida physician."
Some doctors are already seeing a surge of interest.
Dr. Brent Schlapper, who runs a small practice focusing on addiction medicine in DeLand, said he received some 50 inquiries about marijuana treatment the day after the amendment passed. The semi-retired osteopathic physician said the response caught him and his assistant off guard. He only became certified to treat patients with marijuana in late October.
"This is something that's always intrigued me, and it goes right along with my addiction practice," Schlapper said.
Some callers were dismayed to learn that state law first requires a doctor-patient relationship of at least 90 days, he said. But about a dozen of them became patients. Schlapper said he expanded his business hours recently to focus on medical marijuana patients one day out of the week.
If patient interest remains high, Schlapper isn't sure how many he will take on. But he noted that since patients usually receive a 45-day supply, it wouldn't require a lot of face time unless a serious issue arises.
The state decides who can dispense marijuana; the strength; and what forms patients can receive it. Physicians must also submit quarterly treatment plans to the University of Florida College of Pharmacy or whenever the plan changes.
"This is obviously a new standard of care that's just been introduced by the state," Schlapper said. "In my almost 40 years of experience, I don't think there's ever been a state-run standard of care, per se."
There's a flip side to the issue. Opponents argue there's so little scientific research on medical marijuana that it's not fair to call it medicine yet.
Dr. Andria Klioze, an internal medicine doctor who works at a local Veterans Affairs medical center, said rigorous trials are needed to determine how the drug interacts with others, and if there is more harm than good over time.
"There are studies that are being done at the University of Florida right now, and I know there was a guy that was doing studies out of Israel," she said. "But one person and one institution is not enough to make an approval for a drug."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Medical Marijuana - No Easy Choice For Volusia, Flagler Physicians
Author: Mike Finch II
Contact: 386-252-1511
Photo Credit: Seth Perlman
Website: The Daytona Beach News-Journal
