As medical director for Medical Cannabis of Southern California I have seen several thousand patients for medical marijuana recommendations.   I operate two clinics in Irvine and Long Beach 5 days per week.   In the past 6 months I have seen an explosion of doctor “clinics” pop up offering recommendations for almost nothing.   Wondering how any doctor or business model could sustain with such ridiculous prices I decided to do some homework to see what was really taking place out there.   What I found is pretty gross (for lack of a better word). I want to encourage dispensaries to look into the clinics for recommendations that are new or they do not recognize to make sure they are operating legally before accepting their patients.

What is really happening is that most of these clinics do not actually have physicians physically present.  One you speak to a doctor over the phone, in another you talk to a doctor via skype and in a few the patients were seen by nurses.   The California State Medical Board is very clear that physicians must perform the same evaluation on patients that they would if prescribing any other medication.   NO DOCTOR IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD PRESCRIBE A BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICATION TO A NEW PATIENT OVER THE PHONE OR VIA SKYPE… WITHOUT PERFORMING A PHYSICAL EXAM AND TAKING A DETAILED HISTORY.   IT WOULD BE CAREER SUICIDE. Yet when it comes to marijuana these doctors could care less about their medical licenses.   THEY MUST PHYSICALLY EXAMINE THE PATIENT.

Not only are these patients not getting the care they deserve but their recommendations are really not valid per California law and eventually these doctors will lose their licenses.

It is our duty as doctors and dispensary owners to make sure that we support collective and doctors offices that are legitimate and operating according to State law.   It is the only way that the state of California will take us seriously.

With that I challenge dispensaries to research the doctors office that their patients are coming from to make sure the doctor is actually seeing the patient and is physically signing off on the recommendation.

This week I spoke with a doctor who was working with a medical clinic in Orange County. He told me he was fired because he was requiring patients to provide medical records and documentations and providing temporary recommendations to patients not previously seen by a doctor.  As soon as revenue starting to drop the medical director fired him for not giving 12 month recommendations to ALL PATIENTS regardless if they have been diagnosed prior to the visit.    Shame on that medical director.   Not only is he knowingly breaking California law but he fired a doctor trying to do the right thing.

This is the world we are living in right now.  I believe the stupid will weed themselves out… but the question is can the good guys stick it out until the rest fall of the face of the earth?

Your thoughts?