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Despite some lawmakers' fears of widespread abuse, less than 100 people have applied for medical marijuana cards citing post traumatic stress disorder as the reason. "We can't provide an exact number because it's low enough to where we risk identifying people," said Jonathan Modie, Oregon Health Authority spokesman. The Legislature passed a bipartisan bill during the 2013 session that added PTSD, an anxiety disorder that occurs in people who have experienced a traumatic event, as the 10th qualifying condition for the use of medical marijuana.
Critics of the bill, including Sen. Fred Girod, R-Stayton, warned that adding PTSD would lead to false claims of trauma and abuse of the system. But the limited number of applicants seems to support beliefs held by Sen. Brian Boquist, R-Dallas, a co-sponsor of the bill. "Several veteran constituents requested the bill, but at no point did I think it would be very widespread," Boquist said.
Oregon allows medical marijuana use for patients with certain debilitating medical conditions such as cancer, glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, HIV and AIDS. Senate Bill 281 made Oregon the fourth state in the nation behind New Mexico, Delaware and Connecticut to approve cannabis as a treatment for PTSD. Boquist said he supported medical marijuana for PTSD because he sees it as a temporary bridge that could alleviate symptoms in the short term, while long-term treatments are developed. "The federal VA has been struggling for years with its depression and mental health procedures ... They have, or had, simply placed veterans on a variety of drugs as it was a cheap answer," Boquist said. "As they move away from this type of policy to a treatment policy, the number of veterans requiring drugs will decrease, hopefully."
The federal government classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance, which means it doesn't recognize any medical uses. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs allows patients to use medical marijuana in states where it's legal. People with PTSD had 90 days before the law took effect Jan. 1 to submit applications to the Health Authority because the agency can take up to 14 business days to process an application. Modie said this allowed people to begin using medical marijuana Jan. 1. "Applications are slow," Modie said. "There hasn't been a rush."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Statesmanjournal.com
Author: Anna Staver
Contact: Customer Service | Statesman Journal | statesmanjournal.com
Website: PTSD
Critics of the bill, including Sen. Fred Girod, R-Stayton, warned that adding PTSD would lead to false claims of trauma and abuse of the system. But the limited number of applicants seems to support beliefs held by Sen. Brian Boquist, R-Dallas, a co-sponsor of the bill. "Several veteran constituents requested the bill, but at no point did I think it would be very widespread," Boquist said.
Oregon allows medical marijuana use for patients with certain debilitating medical conditions such as cancer, glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, HIV and AIDS. Senate Bill 281 made Oregon the fourth state in the nation behind New Mexico, Delaware and Connecticut to approve cannabis as a treatment for PTSD. Boquist said he supported medical marijuana for PTSD because he sees it as a temporary bridge that could alleviate symptoms in the short term, while long-term treatments are developed. "The federal VA has been struggling for years with its depression and mental health procedures ... They have, or had, simply placed veterans on a variety of drugs as it was a cheap answer," Boquist said. "As they move away from this type of policy to a treatment policy, the number of veterans requiring drugs will decrease, hopefully."
The federal government classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance, which means it doesn't recognize any medical uses. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs allows patients to use medical marijuana in states where it's legal. People with PTSD had 90 days before the law took effect Jan. 1 to submit applications to the Health Authority because the agency can take up to 14 business days to process an application. Modie said this allowed people to begin using medical marijuana Jan. 1. "Applications are slow," Modie said. "There hasn't been a rush."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Statesmanjournal.com
Author: Anna Staver
Contact: Customer Service | Statesman Journal | statesmanjournal.com
Website: PTSD
