MADISON: The Veterans Administration recently decided to formally allow patients treated at its hospitals and clinics to use medical marijuana in states where it is legal.

Had a majority of Wisconsin State lawmakers not shrugged their collective shoulders to the plight of disabled vets and instead passed the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act this year, many Wisconsin veterans could now be rejoicing at the news.

Instead, it’s just more fear and looking over their shoulders, or moving to states where it is legal, as close as Michigan or Colorado, as many are doing if they have the ways and means. Meanwhile, with the election cycle heating up, many of the lawmakers who left Wisconsinites without legal access to medical marijuana are now asking to be reelected or even promoted to the U.S. Congress, in the case of State Sen. Julie Lassa (D-Milladore). Lassa joined Republicans on the Senate Health Committee in ensuring that Wisconsin veterans, seniors, sick disabled and dying would continue to be considered criminals if they chose medical cannabis to ease their pain. She now wants voters to trust her to send troops to war, after failing to protect veterans who have already served and who need medical cannabis to move forward with their lives.

The letter summarizing the new policy:.

This is a follow-up response to your letter requesting clarification of the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) policy regarding the practice of prescribing opioid therapy for pain management for Veterans who provide documentation of the use of medical marijuana in accordance with state law.

lf a Veteran obtains and uses medical marijuana in a manner consistent with state law, testing positive for marijuana would not preclude the Veteran from receiving opioids for pain management in a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility.

The Veteran would need to inform his provider of the use of medical marijuana, and of any other non-VA prescribed medications he or she is taking to ensure that all medications, including opioids, are prescribed in a safe manner.

Standard pain management agreements should draw a clear distinction between the use of illegal drugs, and legal medical marijuana. However, the discretion to prescribe, or not prescribe, opioids in conjunction with medical marijuana, should be determined on clinical grounds, and thus will remain the decision of the individual health care provider.

The provider will take the use of medical marijuana into account in all prescribing decisions, just as the provider would for any other medication. This is a case-by-case decision, based upon the provider’s judgment, and the needs of the patient.

Should you have further questions, please contact Robert Kerns, PhD, National Program Director, New England Healthcare System at (203) 932-5711, extension 3841.

Signed, Robert A. Petzel, M.D.

The original letter is available here for viewing or download.
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