According to regulations in place in Illinois, patients are required to have a doctor's signature in order to be allowed to buy medical marijuana. However, some health systems are forbidding doctors from signing these kind of papers, taking into consideration the fact that the drug is still illegal at the federal level.
Others health systems in the state are cautiously allowing doctors to participate in the pilot program. They are even conducting some training sessions to ensure doctors are well informed about their legal responsibilities as gatekeepers.
Illinois is included among the 23 American states that permit marijuana for medical use. But the reports show that since two years ago when the law was enacted, the program has been slow to start.
A total of seven cultivation centers have been green-lighted in the state to start growing marijuana and medical marijuana sales will begin later this year. Yet, only a frustratiung low number of 2,800 patients have qualified for the program. One of the reasons is the hesitance from the medical establishment.
Marijuana provides an exciting new treatment option for some doctors, while for others is just an anoyance they try to avoid, an unfamiliar substance they haven't covered in medical school.
"We're all cautious about new things. We want to test the waters," According to Dr. Scott Cooper, president of the Illinois State Medical Society, the medical community is usually cautious about new things and they want first "to test the waters". The Illinois State Medical Society provides now training to doctors on the marijuana law, however it is expected to deal with a leaning curve and things are not going to move very fast.
Meanwhile, some patients in Illinois are also waiting for Gov. Bruce Rauner's administration to approve 11 additional diseases and medical conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder, osteoarthritis and migraine. This new move would open legal medical marijuana for millions more residends of the state.
Dctors must sign a five-page form under the present law, attesting that the patient has an approved diagnostic for medical marijuana use and that they have a "bona fide physician-patient relationship" going well beyond just a marijuana consultation. Furthermore, doctors are required to mail the form to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Most of the large health systems in the state are encouraging doctors to know the law and allowing them to use their own judgment. For instance, Downers Grove-based Advocate Health Care held a day-long seminar in late May, drawing about 100 doctors.
"Our goal is to assist patients on their path back to health," According to Dr. Kevin McCune, the CEO of the Advocate Medical Group, their "goal is to assist patients on their path back to health" and according to this goal doctors work individually with each patient in order to determine the best treatment plan.
