The post Do You Need To Tell Your Doctor About Smoking Weed? appeared first on High Times.
Do you need to tell your doctor about smoking weed? Over half the US has hopped on the green bandwagon in legalizing medical weed. Even still, in the states slacking on marijuana law reform want to medicate with pot. But is it actually OK to let the doc know blazing helps your symptoms? Do you really need to tell your doctor about smoking weed?
How HIPAA Keeps You Safe
Maybe this will help you chill about coming clean about using pot to your doc. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or HIPAA offers the promise of a safe space at the doctor’s office. Joe Elford, a lawyer at Americans for Safe Access, explains why you’re in the clear.
“A doctor’s recommendation for medical marijuana is very private since HIPAA makes it nearly impossible for even law enforcement to obtain private patient records.” Great news! HIPAA secures patient privacy, so a doc can’t go to the cops and turn you in for toking.
Still paranoid the doctor can’t be trusted? The Center for Disease Control doesn’t even want them bothering with looking for THC in routine patient drug screening anymore.
With the opioid crisis and health issues plaguing the nation, focus has shifted away from weed as dangerous. Instead, research has encouraged a growing consensus of weed’s medicinal value.
Quality Medical Marijuana Doctors
But just because you tell your doctor about smoking weed doesn’t guarantee access and good advice. Even states with medical marijuana can’t find doctors to recommend the drug to patients.
Sometimes it isn’t cost-effective to become registered to approve a patient