Page 28 - February 2017

Dear Readers:

South Florida Hospital News & Healthcare Report welcomes you to CannabisNewsFlorida.com, a new feature of our print
publication, website, and e-newsletters. Its purpose is to provide pertinent educational information from leading authorities
about medical and business developments in the medical cannabis industry. We also intend to provide both national
and international information which will affect the medical cannabis business in the State of Florida.

Medical Marijuana Experts Will Present

to Physicians On Legal, Medical and Research Issues

Since Florida lacks education on cannabis as medicine, Florida-based Canna know how it’s possible that one herb can safely and
Holdings brings together an esteemed group of physicians, medical practitioners, effectively treat so many medical conditions. The
attorneys and industry experts for the second medical symposium in the state of answer lies in the endocannabinoid system.
Florida. Experts Dustin Sulak, M.D., Gregory Gerdeman, Ph.D., and Gregory Smith, Strangely, endocannabinoid physiology is omitted
M.D., will speak and present scientific research on how medical marijuana can benefit from almost every medical school curriculum - it’s
debilitating conditions such as pain and Alzheimer’s disease. A group of Florida time for health care providers to discover what
licensed attorneys will sit on a legal panel to discuss key points from Amendment 2 researchers know to be the one of the most impor- Gregg H. Weiss
and potential liability issues. tant physiologic system involved in establishing and
“Our goal for the symposium is to create an environment where physicians and maintaining human health. I’m excited to be a part of the symposium that Canna
medical professionals can learn about the science and research behind medical Holdings has organized - it will ultimately benefit patients more than anyone else”.
cannabis and the human endocannabinoid system,” says Gregg H. Weiss, founder of The symposium is scheduled for Saturday, March 11, 2017 at The Westin in Fort
Canna Holdings and event organizer. “In addition to CMEs, our event will confront Lauderdale. Registration will begin at 8 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. Tickets can be reserved
the legal issues Florida physicians are facing. Education is a key component to a suc- prior to the event at CannaHoldings.com. Only 300 tickets will be sold for this exclu-
cessful rollout of the medical marijuana program in Florida. If physicians do not have sive event on a first come, first serve basis. Attendees have the option to purchase a
the facts along with recent science and research, it will be nearly impossible for the CME Ticket with the ability to earn up to 6 AMA PRA Category 1 CME Credits pro-
projected 450,000 patients in Florida to have access to this medicine”. vided at TheAnswerPage.com
The South Florida Medical Cannabis Symposium is specifically targeted towards Title sponsor of the symposium, CHT Medical, one of seven licensed dispensing
licensed Florida Physicians in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade Counties. With organizations recently started home delivery service to qualified patients. Other spon-
the overwhelming passage of Amendment 2 and the current confusion on how the sors include Modern Health Concepts, CannaKorp, Greenspoon Marder, AltMed, The
program will be rolled, physician education and legal guidance are critical. Florida Medical Cannabis Industry Association, TheAnswerPage.com, South Florida
Dr. Dustin Sulak, commented, “Thousands of patients and their doctors want to Hospital News and the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida.

The Subtle Disrespect of the

"90 Day Relationship Prior to a Referral Rule"

Dr. Joseph Rosado is clearly emotional when he discusses the medical marijuana treatment.
patients that he has lost to cancer and other ailments prior to the Despite the increased paperwork and the 90 day restriction on their
completion of the 90 day relationship period required by Florida ability to refer, these doctors are committed to being advocates, giving
Statute. patients the treatment that they deserve, and educating themselves on
According to current Florida law, a physician must have a 90 the dosages for their patients. Dr. Rosado encourages physicians to
day relationship with a patient before they are allowed to give a "start low and go slow" when determining the correct Medical
referral for low-thc Marijuana. This will be changed with the roll Marijuana dose for patients.
out of Constitutional Amendment 2 which received 71% of the I got an opportunity to speak with his patient, Heather Joy Russell
vote on the November 8th, 2016 Ballot and expands the number in the office waiting area. She was looking forward to Amendment 2
of illnesses where Cannabis treatment is permitted. Medical Marijuana and describes her experience as a disabled veteran
Dr. Rosado is a physician based in Orlando, FL and he is look- with post traumatic stress disorder. She says that she has been self-
ing forward to the release of the rules related to Amendment 2. He medicating for years and without marijuana, she feels like "the Hulk,
is unclear as to why he is able to prescribe narcotics within five as if she is going to burst out of her skin". She is not able to eat, sleep,
minutes of meeting a patient, but has to wait 90 days before a BY SCHERIL MURRAY or work due to her rage and anxiety related to PTSD. She starts to cry
patient can benefit from the natural healing of the Cannabis POWELL, ESQ. when she talks about what this new treatment will mean for her life.
plant. He is disturbed by the loss of 25% of his patients before he She has been prescribed 40 narcotics over the years to treat her symp-
could offer them comfort and healing in the form of Cannabis. toms and none of them has worked. Medical Marijuana is a life chang-
He is determined to spread the word to other physicians and encourages them to er for Heather.
start educating themselves with books such as the "Handbook of Cannabis" by Dr. Rosado, Dr. Weiner, and Dr. Moise all agree that Medical Marijuana creates a
Roger G. Pertwee, seminars, and webinars. new opportunity for physicians to heal people and change lives. The question that
Similarly, Dr. Michelle Weiner is a strong advocate of the healing properties of remains to be answered is, if we trust physicians to issue prescriptions for narcotics
Cannabis. She is a physician with five locations in South Florida. She emphasizes tied to overdosing fatalities, why don't we trust them to refer patients for medical
that doctors have the responsibility to educate themselves and not rely on dispen- marijuana treatment, when there have not been any overdosing deaths?
saries to tell them which illnesses respond to which variations of Cannabis. She is This question is being considered by our Florida Senate and House of
optimistic that we will begin to see Cannabis Medicine Education being added to Representatives Health Quality sub-committees.
the curriculum of medical schools around the country. If a physician is seeking more information on treatment and dosing best prac-
Dr. Rudy Moise, who is based in Miami, Florida says that he does not like to pre- tices, they can contact any of the mentioned physicians.
scribe narcotics and sees Medical Marijuana as an exit drug. He recognizes the
addictive nature and devastating impacts of prescription narcotics. He is looking to Scheril Murray Powell, Associate at Doumar, Allsworth, Laystrom, Voigt, Wachs, and
reduce patient reliance on opiates, by giving his patients medical marijuana as an Adair LLP , General Counsel at Patience with Patients,
option, in appropriate doses. He agrees with Dr. Rosado and Dr. Weiner that it is and General Counsel at Minorities 4 Medical Marijuana, can be reached at
unfortunate that terminal cancer patients have to wait 90 days for a referral for smpesquire@outlook.com or (561) 929-4678.

28 February 2017 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News