Pubdate: Sat, 11 Aug 2001
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 2001 The Seattle Times Company
Contact:  http://www.seattletimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/409
Author: Jason George, The Associated Press

OREGON STIFFENS MEDICAL-MARIJUANA RULES

Oregon officials yesterday tightened rules doctors must follow under the 
state's medical-marijuana law, responding to discovery that a single doctor 
has signed 40 percent of the state's marijuana applications.

The founder of a group that pushed for Oregon's medical-marijuana law 
welcomed the new rules, saying they will help prevent misuse of the 
program. "It's something that needs to happen," said Stormy Ray, founder of 
the Stormy Ray Foundation.

But the doctor who is apparently the target of the new rules -- 77-year-old 
Phillip Leveque -- said he thinks they will make it harder for patients to 
qualify for medical marijuana.

"If they want to close down the medical-marijuana program this is the way 
to do it," Leveque said.

Under the new rules, a physician who signs a written statement on behalf of 
an applicant must maintain an up-to-date medical file for the patient, 
perform a physical and create a treatment plan. Those who monitor the 
marijuana program would be allowed to examine a patient's original file or 
require a copy of the file from the physician.

If a doctor does not perform all those tasks, a patient's application will 
be denied, said Mac Prichard, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Human 
Services.

The stricter regulations will apply only to pending and future 
applications, he said.

The new rules are meant to ensure that doctors and patients are complying 
with Oregon's Medical Marijuana Law, approved by voters in 1998, said Grant 
Higginson, state health officer with the Human Services Department.

The new rules are in effect for up to 180 days. A public hearing to 
establish permanent rules will be held this fall.

Oregon is among nine states with medical-marijuana laws. Its law requires 
patients to submit a statement from an attending physician confirming that 
the patient has a debilitating condition such as cancer, glaucoma, AIDS or 
seizures that would be eased through use of marijuana.

Once a doctor signs the statement, the patient can legally grow marijuana 
at home for medical use or can designate a caregiver to grow the plants.

Leveque has signed 935 of the state's 2,351 approved applications for 
medical marijuana. The doctor who comes in second has filed 71, Leveque said.

Higginson, who cannot confirm that Leveque is the doctor in question 
because of confidentiality laws, said the large number of cases "makes us 
question whether this person could truly qualify as the attending physician 
for all of these patients."

Leveque said patients sometimes send him their medical files, but he does 
not require them.

The patients often contact him by telephone, describe their ailments and 
send him their application, which he then gives to the state for approval, 
he said.

Leveque says he fills a need for desperate patients, almost all of whom 
come to him after seeking help in vain from other doctors.

Program officials recently discovered seven cases in which patients 
apparently forged the signature of Leveque, an osteopath.

Leveque is under investigation by the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners for 
alleged inattention to at least one patient, a teenager from Brookings. The 
board notified Leveque by letter last month that it was investigating 
allegations that "you authorized this patient to receive a 
medical-marijuana card without first examining her, diagnosing her 
condition, charting your care or conferring with any of her other providers."

Leveque says the patient told him she suffered from a painful "severe sinus 
dysfunction" that was unrelieved by surgery or medication. Only marijuana 
provided help, the patient told him.

Ray, of the Stormy Ray Foundation, said Leveque might have kept less than 
exact records but is a fine doctor. "Dr. Leveque fills a very needed 
service. I don't want people to think of him as a big bad doctor," she said.

Under current state law, approved users or the designated caregiver may 
grow three mature plants, four immature plants and possess 3 ounces of 
dried plant and flowers at one time. A doctor cannot prescribe marijuana 
but can suggest it to patients who might benefit.

Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado 
and Maine have medical-marijuana laws.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom