Blatman Health and Wellness Center is proud to announce our participation in Ohio’s medical marijuana program, which began on September 8th, 2017. Our wellness clinic has been specializing in the holistic management of chronic pain and other disorders since 1988. Medical marijuana and CBD oils are welcome additions to our diverse array of treatment options for our patients. Natural remedies and regenerative medicines are our main focuses of treatment. Our practitioner, Dr. Blatman, is currently certified as a medical marijuana recommending doctor. Since the implementation of the MMJ program, Ohio has approved 22 conditions for medical marijuana treatment. The state is consistently researching and approving additional conditions for MMJ cards, as recently as early 2021.
How Do You Get a Medical Marijuana Prescription?
Technically, you can’t get a medical marijuana prescription. But you can get the next best thing — a medical marijuana recommendation. You just have to find a state-approved medical marijuana doctor near you.
Because marijuana currently remains a Schedule 1 substance illegal under federal law, MMJ doctors cannot technically prescribe marijuana. Instead, what an approved medical marijuana doctor can do is make a recommendation that allows you to use it medicinally under state law. These state-approved MMJ doctors are also referred to as “CTR” doctors – Certified to Recommend. You will need to register with the State Board of Pharmacy and have a medical marijuana card. After your office visit and recommendation, your credentials will be added to the Ohio database and the state will send an email that allows you to pay and register your medical marijuana card. Then your card will be emailed to you. This card will expire after one year, and it will need to be re-validated every 3 months by the CTR doctor to maintain access to the dispensaries.
Verilife was the first medical marijuana dispensary in the city of Cincinnati certified by The Ohio Board of Pharmacy. Currently, there are 58 provisionally-approved medical marijuana dispensaries in the State of Ohio, 53 of which have official certificates of operation for dispensing medical marijuana in the state.
There are currently several approved medical marijuana dispensaries in the Greater Cincinnati and Dayton area. These include:
- Bloom Medicinals
- Have a Heart Cincy
- Mad River Remedies
- Pure Ohio Wellness
- Strawberry Fields (2 locations)
- Sunnyside
- Therapeutic Healing Care II, LLC
- Verilife (2 locations)
To legally purchase medical marijuana at any of the above Cincinnati area dispensaries, simply show up and present your medical marijuana card.
How to Obtain Your Ohio MMJ Card from an MMJ Doctor
Certified Cincinnati medical marijuana doctors and physicians across Ohio can recommend marijuana to patients who have a qualifying medical condition. Eligible conditions are listed below. It’s important to remember that CTR/MMJ doctors do not actually prescribe medicinal cannabis. If you qualify, you’ll receive a medical marijuana recommendation (which works similarly to a prescription) that you can then use to obtain a MMJ card to legally purchase medical marijuana and CBD oil from a registered dispensary.
Health Conditions that Currently Qualify for Medical Marijuana in Ohio
You can find this list of conditions and more information at the Ohio Government’s medical marijuana site.
- AIDS
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
- Alzheimer’s
- Cachexia (wasting syndrome)
- Cancer
- CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy)
- Crohn’s disease
- Epilepsy or another seizure disorder
- Fibromyalgia
- Glaucoma
- Hepatitis C
- IBS/IBD (inflammatory bowel disease)
- MS (multiple sclerosis)
- Pain that is chronic and severe or intractable (this includes chronic lower back pain)
- Parkinson’s
- Positive HIV status
- PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
- Sickle cell anemia
- Spinal cord disease or injury
- Ulcerative colitis
According to Ohio’s MMJ website, in 2021 “the State Medical Board of Ohio determined the following conditions are covered by an existing qualifying condition: arthritis, chronic migraines and complex regional pain syndrome. These conditions were determined to be covered by pain that is either chronic or intractable.”
In order for you to qualify, an Ohio MMJ doctor approved to recommend a medical marijuana “prescription” will need to diagnose you with one of the above conditions, or agree with the medical records of your current specialist who diagnosed you previously.
We Can Recommend Medical Marijuana Cards
Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Program is active, and we’re proud to be one of the medical cannabis clinics in Ohio. Dr. Blatman is one of 600 MMJ doctors in Ohio that are able to recommend marijuana medicinally. While no medical professional can technically “prescribe” medical marijuana, Dr. Blatman can make a medical marijuana recommendation, which pretty much accomplishes the same thing.
Your license will last one year and will allow you to possess medical marijuana and CBD oil. Access to the dispensaries is provided 3 months at a time as Dr. Blatman records your response to treatment. Types of medical cannabis available in Ohio include topical patches, CBD oil, raw herbs, edibles, and more. Smoking cannabis remains against the law and is not included in the approved forms of medical marijuana consumption. Medical ingestion has to occur through alternative methods such as edible consumption like marijuana pills, non-combustible methods like vaping, or via topicals like creams and balms. Public consumption continues to be against the law, so your consumption of medical marijuana products will need to take place in the privacy of your own home.
Other Things to Think About if You Want to Obtain an Ohio MMJ Card
There are certain things about having a medical marijuana prescription card in Ohio that are obscure but important to know. Since it’s still illegal federally, the rules and regulations are nuanced, which is why consulting with a state-approved medical marijuana doctor when trying to obtain your MMJ card is important. Factors like:
- Even though you have to register with the state, the registry is private, and your information will only be available to your doctor, the MMJ doctor who recommended the medical marijuana, and any medical marijuana dispensaries in the State of Ohio.
- Currently, you can’t possess a medical marijuana card and a CCW (conceal and carry) permit at the same time.
- Possessing an Ohio MMJ card does not exclude you from being drug tested by an employer.
- Certain psychological disorders like Bipolar I may cause a medical marijuana doctor not to give you a recommendation, as marijuana may interact negatively with some psychotropics and anti-psychotics.
- While other states have approved “reciprocity” (meaning they accept Ohio MMJ cards), Ohio currently doesn’t recognize any out-of-state medical marijuana prescriptions.
- Concerning reciprocity, it is still illegal to transport any marijuana across state lines.
Please feel free to call our office with any questions if you are interested in obtaining a medical marijuana card and think you may qualify.