For patients across the country, it's getting easier and easier to\naccess medical marijuana. Patients in New York, however, aren't having\nthe same luck. According to an investigation conducted by The Journal\nNews, New York State agencies have mishandled dozens of regulations that\ncontrol how doctors grant medical marijuana to patients. These mistakes\nhave led to failed dispensary openings, inaccurate information and\nconflicts throughout the entire New York medical system, mistakes which\nI believe can only be counteracted by the implementation of a more\ncohesive Telehealth and medical marijuana strategy. Here's what\nconsumers need to know.
\nNew York's Medical Marijuana Laws
\nWhile New York legalized medical\nmarijuana in\n2014, the state's laws are currently incredibly restrictive. For\nexample, there are roughly 200,000\npatients\nin the state waiting to be certified for medical marijuana, but only\n1,565 have achieved certification. Additionally, out of the 90,000\ndoctors in the state, only 455 have registered for the medical marijuana\nprogram. To make matters worse, the state refuses to release the names\nof these participating doctors in any publicly accessible format. This\nmakes it incredibly difficult for patients to access medical marijuana\ncare in New York.
\nThe reason that doctors aren't registering doesn't come down to a\ndisinterest in doing so, however - it's the result of increasing\nconcerns about the potential for federal legal ramifications. Because\nNew York's medical marijuana laws are still residing in a legal gray\narea, many doctors refuse to certify patients in order to protect\nthemselves and their practices. Additionally, doctors who want to\nprovide medical marijuana are required to carry additional malpractice\ninsurance,\nwhich is a deterrent for many. As well as this the doctors are required\nto take an educational course as well as pay a \"enrollment fee\" to\nparticipate in the program. Many doctors also worry that participating\nin the medical marijuana program would impede their ability to prescribe\nother drugs, thus cutting down on their capacity to treat other patients\nadequately.
\nAnd their fears aren't entirely unfounded. Even Kirsten Gillibrand, New\nYork's Democratic senator, states that doctors who prescribe marijuana\nin New York are \"putting themselves at risk.\" This is because New York\ndoctors are required by the Health Department to provide dosing\ninstructions for the medical marijuana patients they work with, a\nrequirement that is incredibly rare. In other states where medical\nmarijuana is legal, dosing recommendations are left up to medical\nmarijuana dispensaries rather than doctors. Because of this, it's\nobvious that New York's odd requirements place doctors at risk of facing\nfederal penalties if they get the dosing wrong on a medical marijuana\nproduct.
\nWhile New York currently only allows non-smokable types of cannabis,\nsuch as oils and edibles, for use in therapy, the issues surrounding the\ncertification of patients in the state remains and consumers are\nsuffering as a result.
\nThe Effect NY's Restrictive Laws Have on Patients
\nWhile New York lawmakers continue to fight about how, when and where\nmedical marijuana will be prescribed, a few pioneering clinics are\nattempting to cater to the needs of the state's consumers. One clinic\nlocated outside of Buffalo has ten participating doctors and receives\nmore than 100 phone calls each day from patients attempting to access\nmedical marijuana.
\nThe clinic's lead physician, Dr. Laszlo Mechtler, realizes that the\nsmall number of providers and the ongoing legal ambiguity is only\nhurting patients. He says, \"While we wait for the politicians to make\ndecisions, what do we do for our suffering patients? I can't wait for a\n12-year-old that has less than four months to live… That is my duty, to\nrelieve that suffering.\" Dr. Mechtler isn't alone in these sentiments.\nThousands of patients across the state of New York want desperately to\naccess medical marijuana, but can't because of the state's restrictive\nlaws.
\nA Better Way: Why NY Should be Following CA's Model
\nThe fact that patients in New York are having such a difficult time\naccessing care is especially tragic when you take into account how\neffective medical marijuana can be as a treatment modality. Here at\nHelloMD, my team recently conducted a patient response\nsurvey.\nThe survey collected answers from 1,400 medical marijuana consumers in a\nvariety of states. As far as I can tell, this survey is currently the\nmost comprehensive of its kind.
\nThe results of the study go to show exactly how firmly medical marijuana\npatients believe in the effectiveness and importance of cannabis as a\ntreatment option: 84 percent of respondents reported that cannabis helps\nthem cope with their symptoms, while 66 percent reported using the herb\nas their primary treatment modality. 64 percent of respondents reported\nconsuming marijuana daily, and no respondents reported negative\nconsequences of marijuana use. This survey is proof of the importance\nand effectiveness of medical marijuana treatments and should be taken\ninto account as states like New York evaluate their medical marijuana\npolicies.
\nConclusion
\nWhile access to medical marijuana has improved around the country, it's\nclear to me that residents of New York state are still struggling to get\nthe care they need. Thanks to low numbers of participating physicians,\nno way for the public to access lists of approved doctors and incredibly\nslow and restrictive patient certification processes, New York is\nlagging behind many other states in terms of their ability to offer\nconsumers unimpeded access to medical marijuana.
\nUnfortunately, the only people suffering as a result of these failings\nare the consumers themselves. While the situation in New York looks\nbleak currently, I believe firmly that access to care would improve\ngreatly if the state would follow the leads of states like California,\nwhere medical marijuana access is a readily available to all patients. I\nbelieve that only when patients can access the cannabis-focused care\nthey need will New York begin to truly serve its residents.
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