Gregory J. Holman, Springfield News-Leader Published 3:23 p.m. CT Aug. 29, 2019 | Updated 3:44 p.m. CT Aug. 29, 2019
What you should know about medical marijuana in Missouri: How to get a card, what are the qualifiers and more. Megan Bridgeman, Wochit
A St. Louis-based marijuana trade industry group announced Thursday morning that it developed a new training program for Missouri doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers. The goal is to help providers “more effectively consult” with patients looking at medical cannabis as a treatment option.
Typically, marijuana is not a topic given much study in medical school, doctors say. The Missouri Medical Cannabis Trade Association said its “Medical Cannabis Primer for Healthcare Professionals” was created in response to “growing physician demand for reliable information” since Missouri began implementing Amendment 2, the medical marijuana law chosen by a 2-to-1 vote in the general elections of Nov. 2018.
The new training is free, takes one hour and is a formally accredited continuing medical education course according to the American Medical Association’s standards. The course content comes from the trade association’s 10-member committee on healthcare education. That committee includes doctors who work in emergency, family and internal medicine; geriatric care; rehabilitation; obstetrics and gynecology; and specialists in pharmacology.
Course topics include an overview of the human endocannabinoid system; drug safety and laboratory testing standards; delivery methods; dosing best practices; adverse effects; legal obligations, research resources and more, the trade association said.
Available upon request, the session is presented by Mimi Vo, a St. Louis-based internal medicine doctor who sits on the trade association’s board. She and others affiliated with the association, also known as MoCannTrade, have made similar presentations at hospital systems, associations, clinics, medical schools and civic and community forums throughout Missouri, according to the Thursday news release.
“Medical cannabis should never supplant the standard of care,” Vo said in the trade association’s Thursday press release. “Rather, it’s just one more tool in the physician’s toolkit of potential treatments.”
Hospitals worry about the feds
As many U.S. states have embraced medical marijuana, large hospital systems have typically kept it at arm’s length due to fears of jeopardizing relationships with the federal government, a key source of taxpayer funds through Medicare, Medicaid and other programs.
As the News-Leader previously reported, Vo, the St. Louis family doctor, was slated to appear at CoxHealth in Springfield for a medical marijuana training session to be held May 17, but she told the newspaper the event was cancelled.
A representative of the Springfield-based health system said in late May that Cox “decided to decline” to host a training event because at that time, a final decision had not been made regarding Cox policy on medical marijuana.
On June 27, after state officials finalized many regulations for the medical marijuana system, Cox officials and their counterparts at Mercy made separate announcements that neither Missouri health group would recommend cannabis as medical treatment.
More: Here are Springfield doctors willing to do marijuana certifications
“We trust that there are likely therapeutic benefits to the use of medical marijuana,” Cox said at that time, but noted in its statement that cannabis is federally illegal and that Cox must comply with all federal law to maintain funding for operations tied to Medicare and Medicaid.
Mercy’s June 27 statement said, “Mercy believes there is insufficient medical and scientific research on the benefits and risks of cannabis products as part of medical treatment.”
Very little scientific research on marijuana has been conducted inside the United States because cannabis is a Schedule 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Other countries including Canada and Israel have taken a lead in cannabis research.
The News-Leader reached out to both health systems Thursday to learn if they would be interested MoCannTrade’s new accredited training but has not yet heard back.
Missouri’s program
Meanwhile, Missouri’s medical marijuana system is taking shape. More than 8,000 applications for qualifying patient and caregiver ID cards have been approved as of Tuesday, according to Missouri health department data provided to the News-Leader this week. Missouri began taking card applications June 28.
Almost 2,200 applications for medical marijuana business licenses were filed as of Aug. 20. The state must award 348 business licenses no later than Dec. 31. Dispensaries are expected to be operating sometime in mid-2020.
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