Patients in states with medical cannabis programs must apply for state-issued medical cannabis cards before they can begin using cannabis medicinally. But not everyone is eligible for a card. Patients must be diagnosed with a qualifying condition and get a recommendation from a doctor.
The big question among patients is which conditions are actually eligible for medical cannabis treatment. Unfortunately, there is no black-and-white answer. Medical cannabis is regulated at the state level. Each state has its own qualifying conditions list.
Below are some of the most common conditions included on most state lists. If you are a patient thinking of applying for your own medical cannabis card, get in touch with the government agency that regulates cannabis in your state. In all likelihood, that agency has a website on which all its medical cannabis information is published. You should be able to find a list of qualifying conditions there.
1. Chronic and Acute Pain
Every state with a medical cannabis program includes chronic pain on its list of qualifying conditions. Indeed, chronic pain was the proverbial foot in the door when the push for medical cannabis began in earnest more than 20 years ago.
Acute pain is not on every state list, but it is on a lot of them. BeehiveMed, a Utah organization that helps patients obtain medical cannabis cards, says their state lawmakers added acute pain a few years ago in order to help patients undergoing surgery. Adding acute pain allows surgical patients to choose medical cannabis over opioids for post-surgical pain relief.
2. Cancer
Nearly every medical cannabis state also includes cancer on its qualifying conditions list. However, do not misunderstand the intent. Medical cannabis is not a cancer cure. It is recommended to help relieve cancer pain and the nausea that often results from treatment.
The pain from cancer is due both to the disease itself and to some of its treatment methods. Interestingly, cancer patients are known to say that the side effects of treatment are often more uncomfortable than the disease symptoms. Regardless, medical cannabis can help relieve pain and nausea.
3. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
BeehiveMed says that PTSD is second only to chronic pain in terms of the number of Utah residents treated with medical cannabis. I am not sure whether that statistic holds true nationwide, but I wouldn’t be surprised. At any rate, PTSD symptoms including anxiety, insomnia, and flashbacks are reduced in patients who treat with medical cannabis.
4. Seizure Disorders
Next up are seizure disorders. Epilepsy is probably the one disorder in this category most people have heard of. States include seizure disorders on their qualifying conditions lists thanks to ample scientific evidence in support of cannabis treatment. It’s also worth noting that the FDA has actually approved two cannabis-related drugs to treat epilepsy.
5. Chronic Nausea
Treating chronic nausea with medical cannabis was born from cancer treatments. Regardless, non-cancer nausea relief is common enough that many states with medical cannabis programs include chronic nausea on their lists. The mechanism behind cannabis’ efficacy is not well understood. Yet patients swear by it.
Other common conditions on state lists include amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and terminal diseases for which medical cannabis can be utilized to make a patient more comfortable.
Bear in mind that patients must get a recommendation from a medical provider (doctor, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, etc.) to be eligible for a card. It is the medical provider’s responsibility to verify the patient’s claimed medical condition. Not all patients who apply are approved, so remember that as well.
