Florida medical marijuana patients anxious about the end of DeSantis coronavirus order

TALLAHASSEE – Jacalyn Vanderlip says traveling around the state to get medical cannabis for her son George can be terrible.

George Vanderlip, a veteran with a traumatic brain injury, is in full-time care with his parents. He is non-verbal, uses a wheelchair, has difficulty regulating his emotions and becomes car sick.

During the coronavirus pandemic, the state of Florida relieved the Vanderlips of the 280-mile round-trip journeys from their Deland home to Apollo Beach, where the family’s favorite cannabis doctor offices are. Citing an emergency ordinance from Governor Ron DeSantis, the Department of Health has allowed marijuana patients to replenish their medication with cannabis doctors via telemedicine.

But DeSantis’ emergency ordinance is slated to expire on June 26, apparently implying a doctor’s ability to continue to virtually recommend medical cannabis to patients. That’s a concern for the most needy cannabis patients in the state, doctors say.

“For the patients who use medicinal cannabis, many of whom are debilitated and unable to leave their homes … this is a real barrier,” said Dr. Sasha Noe, the doctor from Vanderlip.

The Times / Herald sent the DeSantis office and the Department of Health three separate requests for comment on this story over three days. None were recognized.

DeSantis has made it clear that he would like the state to return to normal prior to the pandemic; he said on May 3 that Florida is “no longer in a state of emergency.”

Doctors in Florida cannot technically prescribe cannabis because the treatment is still illegal at the federal level. But they can certify patients as legal medical marijuana users.

According to the DeSantis prescription, patients first had to see a doctor personally in order to be certified. But patients hoping to be recertified by doctors – as required by the state every 7 months – could virtually see a doctor.

Florida medical cannabis program showed explosive growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the week of March 20, 2020 – when DeSantis first signed its major emergency ordinance – the state sheltered about 327,000 cannabis patients. That number was around 576,000 on June 18, 2021, an increase of 76 percent.

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The relaxed rules for telemedicine are only a small factor in this expansion, said cannabis doctors. Beasley said heightened anxiety and general mental health disorders could have resulted in more people taking marijuana treatment. And Noe said the general growth of the industry in the state has resulted in expanded access for patients.

State records show that Florida more than 100 . added Pharmacies during the pandemic. A cannabis website The industry is estimated to have added 15,000 employees in 2020, a year in which many other sectors have shrunk.

Jacalyn Vanderlip said after years of trial and error, George has finally found a treatment in cannabis that will help him relax his tense muscles. His treatment relies mostly on cannabidiol or CBD rather than tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, Vanderlip said.

Michelle Beasley, a cannabis doctor who practices in the Pensacola area, said she feared the expiry of the COVID-19 regulation could pose a safety issue. Some of her patients have weakened immune systems, she said. It is possible that some were unable to receive any of the coronavirus vaccines.

Although the threat to society from the coronavirus seems to be waning, it can still be fatal to an unvaccinated person.

“I would feel terrible if my cancer patient was exposed in my lobby,” said Beasley.

As the marijuana industry takes hold, the state needs to change its thinking about how doctors can treat patients, Noe said.

As soon as the executive order expires, the state regulations for prescribing controlled substances will be rolled back to state law. Doctors may prescribe certain controlled substances via telemedicine in certain circumstances: for psychiatric treatment or to inpatients in hospital, hospice and nursing homes.

A few bills that would have allowed doctors to prescribe more controlled substances via telemedicine if they had become law made significant strides during the 2021 legislature. However, neither bill, Senate Act 700 Still House bill 247It would have allowed doctors to recommend cannabis virtually.

Ron Watson, the President of Watson Strategies, who has campaigned for the legislature on numerous questions about medical cannabis, tried in the previous session to convince the legislature to codify the pandemic rules around medical cannabis into law. Patients have relied on virtual medical cannabis visits with no problem for well over a year, he argued.

The legislature did not listen. Families like the Vanderlips will likely have to wait until the 2022 legislature if they want to avoid the cannabis doctor’s office in the future.

Jacalyn Vanderlip said she doesn’t understand why that is.

“What is the difference?” She asked. “What makes the difference if (Dr. Noe) sees (George) on the video call and if she sees him in the office?”