Pubdate: Sat, 10 Dec 2011 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2011 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/letters.html Website: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Author: Glen McGregor ARTHRITIS CLAIMS UP IN BID TO SPEED APPLICATIONS Advocates Say It's Easier to Get a Doctor to Sign a Prescription For Pot Intended to Treat Sore Joints The federal government has seen a staggering increase in the number of requests for medical marijuana authorizations from applicants who claim they have severe arthritis in order to legally obtain the drug. Applications to Health Canada based on severe arthritis claims jumped 2,400 per cent between 2008 and 2010, far outstripping the number of claims for cancer, HIV/AIDS and other serious diseases, a Citizen analysis has found. The spike in arthritis claims was part of an overall rise in applications over the past three years, as more private clinics specializing in marijuana began referring patients to pot-friendly doctors willing to sign their forms. But unless there has been an enormous, undocumented surge in arthritis rates in Canada over the past three years, the data suggests that patients or their doctors may be bending the government's rules to obtain medical marijuana more easily. Arthritis was listed as the reason for 40 per cent of all applications under the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) received so far in 2011. That was double the rate seen in 2008, according to electronic records released to the Citizen under the Access to Information Act. Severe arthritis is one of the Category 1 illnesses that require patients to obtain the signature of just a single doctor under Health Canada rules. Cancer, multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS infections and spinal cord injuries and disease and are also listed in Category 1, but often have more obvious visible symptoms than arthritis. Patients with other Category 2 illnesses such as hepatitis, glaucoma or ulcerative colitis must go through the additional step of getting a specialist to sign their applications, a process that can take many months and does not always succeed. Some marijuana advocates believe that patients are asking doctors to sign off on the faster Category 1 condition of severe arthritis to speed their applications. "I think a lot of people are applying under arthritis even if they may have a different condition," says Scott Gilbert, who runs the Hamilton Medical Marijuana Centre. "They are going with whatever is the easier one to get approved on." Although a patient might otherwise qualify for authorization based on a Category 2 illness such as fibromyalgia or Crohn's disease, a savvy doctor familiar with the MMAR program might ask if the patient also has arthritis, too. Health Canada is conducting a review of MMAR and plans to overhaul the way the program works, in part by transferring more authority to doctors. The department says it is required to approve applications that have been signed by a doctor and meet the conditions of the MMAR. It has noticed the sharp increase in marijuana applications but doesn't know why, exactly, the numbers are rising so sharply. "Increasing awareness of the program among patient groups and treating physicians is likely a key contributing factor," said Health Canada spokesman Gary Holub in an email. Patients often complain that the refusal of doctors to approve their applications is the greatest obstacle to entering the program. But the surging number of applications suggest they are finding other ways to get approved with the rules. Many privately run clinics are sprouting up across the country, with in-house physicians to sign the 33-page Health Canada application form or provide referrals to doctors who are willing. The Do No Harm Clinic in Kelowna, for example, has helped process applications for more than 500 patients. It serves patients who have been unable to find a doctor to sign their forms and will provide a physician to consult with patients anywhere in the country over the Internet. A doctor who works at the clinic agreed to speak to Postmedia about his practice on the condition he not be named, as he does not want to deluged with requests from potential patients. His identify has been confirmed. "Medical marijuana is not a prescription," he said. "I don't have to touch the patient to see they have cancer." But he says he will not list severe arthritis or other illness on the application unless the patient can produce documentation of the disease provided by a specialist. He acknowledged, however, that some other Canadian marijuana clinics are moving to what he calls the California model, where a patient walks in off the street and gets a doctor to sign the forms on the spot. "That kind of thing goes on," he says, but he notes patients can do the same thing if they present with back pain to get a prescription for Oxycodone, a powerful and addictive pharmaceutical painkiller. The doctor volunteers his services but the clinic charges $400 to help patients complete the Health Canada application form. Compassion clubs sell marijuana to sick people without Health Canada approval, making them vulnerable to arrest and prosecution. There have been raids of clubs in Toronto and Montreal, possibly forcing some medical marijuana users to turn to Health Canada to buy pot legally. An increasing number of private clinics and services are working within the system to arrange approval under Health Canada's rules - some charging processing fees. For $450 plus tax, the Medical Cannabis Resource Centre in downtown Vancouver will hook up a patient with a doctor on Skype to confirm identity. Like the Do No Harm Clinic, the centre still requires a statement of diagnosis of a pre-existing condition from another doctor. These clinics are trying to work around the problems in Health Canada's rules to get marijuana to patients who need it, says Rielle Capler of the Canadian Association of Medical Cannabis Dispenseries. "Whether they're entrepreneurs or well-meaning physicians, they're stepping in to fill these gaps," she said. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.