TRIB TOTAL MEDIA SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2019 · 9
ALTERNATIVE ‘MEDICINE’
seek treatment.
Once a doctor recommends
an individual and submits
that recommendation, the
patient will need to log back
into the system, complete
the application, provide an
electronic copy of a state
ID or driver’s license and a
digital photograph and pay
the $50 fee for the medical
marijuana card (those on
Medicaid, PACE/ PACENET,
CHIP, SNAP and WIC could
qualify for a discount).
After receiving your card
roughly three weeks later, the
individual is then free to visit
a dispensary, where pharma-cists
on hand can talk about
the different forms of canna-bis
and methods of adminis-tration,
including tinctures,
ointments, pills, oils, liquid
and flower/dry herb. They
can help you select what
might work best.
Caregivers can also register
in order to go to the dispen-sary,
purchase, transport and
administer medical marijua-na
for a qualified patient who
might be a minor, home-bound
or otherwise unable to
go themselves.
Each patient with a medi-cal
marijuana card can add
two caregivers authorized to
obtain marijuana on their
behalf.
Caregivers can also register
themselves to assist up to five
patients, to whom they need
not have a personal connec-tion.
Ron Boyles of Tyrone,
Pa., is founder of the Green
Bridge Society, an advocacy
group that also helps people
navigate the process for ob-taining
a medical marijuana
card.
He also works in a dispen-sary
and provides patient
outreach and education,
including helping patients
prepare for their first trip to
the dispensary.
Although medical mari-juana
is now legal in Pennsyl-vania,
STOCK.ADOBE.COM
As of January, there were 122 doctors certified to
prescribe medical marijuana in Allegheny County, 19
in Butler County, 18 in Westmoreland County, 10 in
Washington County, seven in Beaver County and four in
Armstrong County.
he said, this is still a
time of transition.
“I have people who get
their card and want to go
to the top of a building and
shout it out,” he said.
“I have others who won’t
let me call their phone. You
get the whole gamut of at-titudes
toward it.”
He encourages people who
think they might benefit
from medical marijuana to
research its use and efficacy
and ask lots of questions.
“If you think it’s bad, it’s
because you’re conditioned
to think that way. It doesn’t
mean it’s correct,” he said.
“Look around, ask ques-tions.
There are lots of events
popping up. More and more
places are doing caregiver
programs, registration events
and educational clinics. I
encourage people to get as
much education as they can,
because this could save your
life.”
Doner said that while there
still is a certain stigma at-tached
to medical marijuana
usage, the perception is night
and day compared to even a
few years ago.
One thing that’s surprised
him and his colleagues is
that while they certainly see
people who have used mari-juana
illegally in the past, the
majority of patients have not
used cannabis before coming
to see them.
“Which we found very
enlightening,” he said. “I
think the reason is that more
patients have conditions or
symptoms or are at a point
in the disease process that
modern medicine has failed
to treat adequately or the
treatment comes with large
side effects. People look at
this as a new ray of hope, so
to speak.”
For more information, visit
the state’s medical marijuana
website at www.medicalmari-juana.
pa.gov/, call 717-547-
3047 or email RA-DHMed-
Marijuana@pa.gov. Other
websites where individuals
can obtain information
about medical marijuana us-age
include leading advocacy
groups safeaccessnow.org
and unitedpatientsgroup.
com, as well as nccih.nih.
gov/health/marijuana, which
is the website of the U.S.
Department of Health and
Human Services’ National
Institutes of Health National
Center for Complementary
and Integrative Health.
adno=6654187 Trouble with stairs?
“Who ya gonna call”?
Call the StairBusters!
724-353-3360
• Best Prices
Guaranteed!
• Best Selection -
New, Used and Rentals
• Next Day Installations
Available
• Local, Family
Owned Business
Since 1999
• Financing Available
• We Service 100%
of What We Sell
Winter
Special!
$600 Off
New Stairlifts Only
Coupon Code: TRIB
1-800-706-2226 • www. StairBusters .com
With this coupon. Not valid with other offers or
prior purchases. Expires 5-18-19.
StairBusters.comTM
Local, Veteran Owned Family Business
Serving The Metro Pittsburgh Area Since 1999.
724-353-3360
295 Delwood Rd. Butler, PA 16001
Our
Stairlifts
Are
100%
American
Made
PA013622
A+ Rating
with BBB
FREE
ESTIMATES
Visit Us At
Pittsburgh
Home & Garden Show
March 1st - 10th
David L. Lawrence Convention Center