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Health & Fitness

Dr's In: Politicians, don't practice medicine!

Marijuana remains an illegal drug that has criminalized millions of Americans for decades.  Our crowded jails are filled with people convicted of selling and using “Mary Jane.”

Marijuana physician prescriptions have proven their value in pain management, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis and an array of chronic and acute illnesses. Allowing physicians to prescribe marijuana to patients makes sense.

Every state should allow marijuana’s medical use. The larger issue, particularly in Florida, is for legislators to step aside and allow physicians to practice their craft.

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Legalizing the drug for recreational use is fraught with controversy and rightly so.  Government has tried – and failed — to prohibit gambling, alcohol consumption and the use of certain pain medications.

Banning a wanted substance or a desired activity plays well into criminal hands.  Most likely, the staunchest opponents of legalizing weed would be those whose underground businesses serve eager customers.

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Other political interference relates to the current state of pain management.  Well-meaning elected officials have restricted physicians from prescribing certain pain medication.  The result leaves many suffering patients unable to afford needed prescription drugs.

Abusers are the target, but most people who require pain medication are not abusing the medication. There are 50 million uninsured and millions more inadequately insured who can’t afford pain clinics. In the past, people suffering from pain could find relief in their general practitioner’s office at reasonable cost. That may no longer be the case.

Physicians now are wary of prescribing medications that allowed many chronic pain patients to work and go about their daily routines. Free clinics for the most part will not treat chronic pain, so the needy suffer.  Many who can afford pain clinics may find themselves treated as before but at enormous cost.

Yes, there are doctors and patients who have abused the system, but the vast majority have not.  Practitioners, fearing sanctions, can no longer comfortably address chronic pain in primary care practice.

A medical marijuana bill now offers legislators an opportunity to “do the right thing.” State Rep. Joe Saunders, D-Orlando, and state Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Palm Beach, are sponsoring the Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act that makes medical marijuana legal for certain patients with chronic health conditions.  Cathy Jordan suffered from Lou Gehrig’s disease and marijuana eased her symptoms.

The pharmaceutical industry continues to manufacture drugs for debilitating chronic conditions.  Scientists and research centers are discovering new treatments to improve quality of life.

Elected officials rarely have expertise in medical care.  They should not interfere with physician medical management. They should legalize medical marijuana and reconsider pain management restrictions for primary care physicians. As seen in Context Florida

Marc Yacht is a semi-retired physician living in Hudson, Florida.

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