Pubdate: Sat, 17 Nov 2001 Source: Register-Guard, The (OR) Copyright: 2001 The Register-Guard Contact: http://www.registerguard.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/362 Author: Tim Christie Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) MEDICAL MARIJUANA RULES GET HEARINGS Temporary rules governing Oregon's medical marijuana law, put in place last summer after one doctor signed applications for more than 1,000 patients, are scheduled to become permanent in January. Before that happens, state health officials are asking the public whether changes are needed to those rules. Public hearings are scheduled in Eugene, Bend, Medford and Portland, and state officials will accept written comments as well. State officials have circulated copies of the draft rules to 5,000 people, including doctors, patients, caregivers, legislators and law enforcers, said Mary Leverette, special projects manager for the medical marijuana program. Last August, state officials said the rules were needed because of an unnamed doctor who signed for "a disproportionately large number of applicants." They were referring to Dr. Phillip Leveque, a Molalla osteopath who has become the doctor to see for hundreds of patients who can't get their regular doctors to sign for them. It's not known precisely how many patients Leveque has signed for to date. He declined to comment for this story. But in late August, state officials said they had 800 pending medical marijuana applications signed by Leveque, in addition to the 935 applications he'd signed as of Aug. 8. Medical marijuana cards expire after one year, so it's likely some pending applications are for patients seeking renewals. The temporary rules require a physician who signs a statement for a medical marijuana applicant to have an established doctor-patient relationship with the patient and meet one of four criteria: The physician must be primarily responsible for the care and treatment of the patient; must be primarily responsible for providing specialty care; has been asked to consult and treat the patient by the patient's primary care physician; or has reviewed the patient's medical records, conducted a physical examination, provided or planned follow-up care, and documented those activities in the patient's record. Much of the criticism leveled at the rules last summer by doctors and patient advocacy groups has waned. The Oregon Medical Association was concerned about a provision that would have authorized state officials to examine the original patient medical file, or require a physician to provide a copy of the file, to confirm the doctor-patient relationship. The state since clarified that rule so patients would be asked to sign a waiver authorizing the release of their medical records. If a patient declines to sign a waiver, the application may be denied. That change satisfies the Oregon Medical Association's concerns, said Jim Kronenberg, the group's associate executive director. "The bottom line is Oregon physicians, by statute, have a duty to maintain confidentiality in relationships with patients, and that extends to medical records," he said. "If someone wants to review a patient's records, that has to be done with the written permission of the patient. The new version (of the rules) does that," Kronenberg said. Todd Dalotto of the Compassion Center, a Eugene medical marijuana advocacy group, said the current draft of the rules "is a lot more palatable" than what was originally proposed. But he said he remains concerned that state officials are spending so much time and energy scrutinizing doctor-patient relationships while ignoring other problems in the medical marijuana program. "I think they should place more energy into making changes that are clear and present issues for patients and their safety," he said. For example, the state no longer provides applicants with a list of patient-advocacy groups, he said. That leaves patients with no place to turn for help in obtaining or growing medical marijuana. Medical Marijuana Rules The state Department of Human Services is conducting public hearings around Oregon on new rules for the state's medical marijuana program. A copy of the draft rules can be found on the Internet at www.ohd.hr.state.or.us"oaps"mm"oarhear.htm. A Eugene hearing is at 10 a.m. on Dec. 6, City Council chambers, City Hall, 777 Pearl St. Written comments may be sent to: Department of Human Services, Oregon Medical Marijuana Program, P.O. Box 14450, Portland, OR 97293-9923. The Compassion Center, a Eugene patient advocacy group, will help people prepare spoken or written comments. Phone 484-6558. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth