Due to changes in the state law effective July 22, 2011, we were unable to keep our practice open. For example, the new law prohibits advertising, and as we were a small clinic we were not able to see enough patients to keep the doors open without advertising. It has been a pleasure serving our patients, and we are very sad to close our clinic.
For patients with current recommendations issued under the old law, we will of course continue to be available for verifications or any legal testimony needs through the end of your recommendation. However, for any necessary follow up visits or future recommendations, patients will need to see their primary care provider or other specialty providers. Please read on for further detail.
Under the new law, recommendations issued after July 22, 2011 must be from the patient’s primary care provider or other specialty provider involved in the ongoing care of their debilitating condition. An example of a standard specialty provider might be an oncologist, gastroenterologist or rheumatologist. It is unclear if under the new law, those health care providers with experience and continuing education in cannabinoid medicine would qualify as a such a “specialty provider” if they are not also your primary care provider or your oncologist, gastroenterologist, etc. At this point their is no precedence as the law is too new.
The new law has presented unfortunate set backs, and it is our hope that new legislature or initiatives will remedy the situation in the near future.