Colorado-Medical-Marijuana-Blog

Tougher rules and restrictions regarding Colorado medical marijuana patients have now become directed at doctors in Colorado and which in particular, which doctors should be allowed to recommend medical marijuana to patients. The Colorado Board of Health is aiming to make it clearer on how well doctors know their patients before recommending marijuana treatment and also question whether doctors with conditions on their licenses such as a surgeon being banned from surgery due to the development of arthritis should be allowed to recommend marijuana to their patients. These regulations are aimed at discouraging marijuana mills in which doctors recommend marijuana to new patients after only a brief visit. Approximately 1,300 people who applied for medical marijuana cards this last year were denied by the state due to their recommendations coming from doctors with license conditions.

Colorado medical marijuana caregivers may be under tighter scrutiny in the near future as state legislators work to pass bills requiring caregivers to be more open about the product they grow. Lawmakers in Colorado are concerned that it may be harder to disseminate between legitimate caregivers and what they consider to be basement drug dealers. A bill currently pending in legislature is aimed at creating a database of the estimated 40,000 registered caregivers in the state who currently are not under the same kind of security or reporting requirements as commercial dealers. Caregivers are concerned this may put them at risk for police harassment as well as increased crime.

Due to the rising demand for medical marijuana in Colorado over the past year, Colorado Medical Marijuana has added several locations to serve clients more efficiently. Colorado Medical Marijuana clients can obtain product at locations in Ft. Collins, Loveland, Longmont, Broomfield and Boulder north of Denver and Park Meadows/Highlands Ranch, Littleton and Lakewood south of Denver. Colorado Medical Marijuana’s downtown Denver location is also conveniently location for those living in the central metro area. Colorado Medical Marijuana strives to offer clients convenience as well as quality product at all locations as well as a knowledgeable, trained staff to assist with selection and questions. By expanding north to Ft. Collins, Colorado Medical Marijuana has been able to help clients who may be unable to drive down to central Denver for their medical marijuana needs.

Many Colorado medical marijuana patients are finding access to the drug is being hindered by clashing state and federal laws. While the state of Colorado has made medical marijuana legal, federal laws still rule the substance illegal, and the conflicting viewpoints are affecting dispensaries to a large degree. One example is CannaMart, who applied for a business license in Centennial, Colorado to serve as a dispensary for medical marijuana. Although a business license was granted, it was revoked within a month. City officials claimed the owners were not honest on their applications and did not state they were a medical marijuana dispensary. City officials also claimed the business went against federal regulations. The owners and several patients who elide on the dispensary are filing a lawsuit against the City of Centennial in order to get the dispensary’s license reinstated. Centennial is not the first city to ban dispensaries. Earlier this month the City of Castle Rock, Colorado also banned medical marijuana dispensaries. While cities are trying to keep marijuana from becoming easily accessible to everyone, patients who rely on the drug to control medical conditions are finding it harder and harder to gain access to the drug and the relief it offers them.

The biggest barrier to gaining access to the Colorado medical marijuana registry is most likely to be cost. Because there are no general funds allotted to the program, users are required to pay around $100 in fees to be a registered user. Also, all applications, renewals and requests for change must be submitted as a hard papery copy via mail, with changes made in blue ink and must include a copy of the patient’s Colorado identification.

Not all applications will be accepted, however. Recently, four applications were denied due to lack of scientific evidence that medical marijuana usage provided any beneficial effect. Among those rejected were cases of Parkinson’s Disease, Asthma, Anxiety and Bi-Polar Disorder. Although acceptance is carefully screened, Colorado has currently used over 6,700 registry ID cards. The renewal rate is 56 percent.