According to a state official in Louisiana, the state may up the cap on the number of medical marijuana patients doctors are able to serve.
The move would be in effort to avoid potential bottlenecks in the state’s medical marijuana program.
It was in 2016 that the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners (LSBME) established a limit of 100 medical marijuana patients per physician. Doctors are allowed to seek waivers for more.
The program starts late this year or early next year and concerns have already been expressed that with the current patient limit and low physician interest, the waiting lines would be very long.
Only 40 doctors have submitted applications to recommend medical marijuana so far and 23 have been approved.
“We realize we’re going to have to increase that number,” said Vincent Culotta, executive director of LSBME. Culotta has supported the cap being boosted at the panel’s September meeting.
If every doctor who has applied for a permit receives one, the current cap would limit the state to 4,000 patients, not counting exceptions allowed.
According to Culotta, one of Louisiana’s two sanctioned marijuana growers anticipates the number or patients will reach about 100,000 people.
“The 100-patient limit – I hit that limit a month ago,” reported Dr. Victor Chou, who has a medical marijuana clinic in Baton Rouge.
