Threeband
The M1 Does My Talking
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On the other side of the coin, Are people with the MMJ prescribed am amount they can purchase in x amount of time. For example the doc prescribes me 30 pills to take one a day for a month. Just curious.
As noted in an earlier post, it is not prescribed by a doctor in the same way percosets are prescribed.
A doctor may recommend or suggest it, but the patient has to see a state approved medical gatekeeper selected from a specific list. Most of these people seem to be some flavor of nurse practitioner. You pay this person $200 or so, tell them your toe hurts when you kick a lamppost very hard, and they sign off for your medical cannabis. There is big, big, BIG money in being on that state approved list.
In addition, the patient has to apply for a Medical Cannabis card from the state commission. It's a two-step thing: state application and card issuance PLUS
I believe most or all group practices forbid associated doctors from getting on the approved list of gatekeepers. Or perhaps it's an insurance thing. Teratos would know better.
Once you have your MM card, you can go to a state licensed dispensary and buy your medicine. I believe most is sold in various smokable forms, but there are also edible forms, lozenges, oils, salves, etc. Some forms have no THC at all, just CBD, In other words, they won't get you high. Others have very low THC, but high CBD. Of course, others are packed with very high THC levels.
You asked if there are limits to amounts purchased. Yes, there are, there are monthly maximums based on THC content, but they seem VERY generous. I think the default limit works out to the equivalent of about 5 ounces per month of smokable "bud". That is Cheech and Chong levels there.
There are legal restrictions on where and when a patient may use it. It is illegal to smoke in public. It is illegal to smoke in a motor vehicle (I think even in a parked car). It is illegal to operate any machinery under the influence. There's a long list of restrictions, and the dispensaries require purchasers to sign off on a form acknowledging understanding of the restrictions. The forms are kept on record, c.y.a. no doubt. I'm sure few actually read the form. I believe I posted a copy of the form here about a year ago.
By the way, I know all this because my wife tried it last year. As some here know, she suffers from very serious health problems. After her most recent hospitalization last December, she stopped using both the cannabis and tobacco, and I am very glad. She said the cannabis didn't really help her much, which is a huge disappointment.
I was/still am her Registered Caregiver. I have a card which allows me to purchase her cannabis, but not to use it, of course. This does not make me a Prohibited Person, because I am not a user.
My impression of the dispensaries was that the majority of customers are stoners, but there is a definite hard core of legitimately sick people seeking relief, and I believe many are truly helped by it. I would support my wife if she wanted to try it again, and I am very, very disappointed it didn't help her more.