TAMPA, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health just lately issued an emergency ruling on medical marijuana to limit amounts and dosage. Some sufferers fear about what this might imply for future utilization.
“I started having what they refer to as grand mal cluster seizures in about 2012,” mentioned Jeffery Swoyer, who makes use of medical hashish.
The Mayo Clinic defines a grand mal seizure as a seizure with a lack of consciousness and violent muscle contractions.
“I would have those in clusters of up to five to seven at a time,” mentioned Swoyer.
He tells ABC Action News after he acquired his prognosis, he was put on heavy doses of pharmaceutical medication, however they didn’t assist.
That’s when he discovered a brand new physician and turned to medical marijuana. He mentioned he observed enhancements virtually instantly.
“My neurological distress was almost zero,” mentioned Swoyer.
Over time with hashish, his seizures have gotten progressively higher.
“At this point, we’ve gotten the medicines dialed in at such a level to where I’m pushing towards three years seizure-free,” mentioned Swoyer.
That’s why the emergency ruling has him involved.
“The state has put regulations and limits in terms of the amount of milligrams of THC that people can purchase overall. They put limits on the number of milligrams for each different type of route of administration. And they put in this rolling limitation that a person can only get so many milligrams per 70-day period,” said Dr. David Berger, Certified Pediatrician at Wholistic Pediatrics & Family Care.
According to the ruling, a person can’t get more than 24,500 milligrams of THC in a 70-day period.
Smokeable marijuana supply is capped at 2.5 ounces over a 35-day period.
The new ruling also sets a limit on the amount of THC that can be in each product, restricting the daily dosage of THC in different administration methods.
“Some of my patients for instance, because of their medical needs, they might need to have more milligrams than what the state is allowing for,” mentioned Berger.
Doctors are capable of apply for an exemption for any sufferers they imagine want greater than the restricted dosage.
“Which can take up to 10 business days to do so if a person is out of their medicine, they could be out of their medicine for a good week or almost two and really have no way of accessing it,” mentioned Berger.
For Swoyer, these restrictions are worrisome as he works to maintain his seizure dysfunction below management.
He tells ABC Action News that medical marijuana gave him his life again.
“I’ve been able get my driver’s license reinstated by the state of Florida, been able to start driving, actually live a real life again and can actually look toward the future versus sitting here every day wondering when is the next seizure going to come,” mentioned Swoyer.
“I don’t have to necessarily worry about, for example, having my co-workers finding me in our walk-in cooler because I’ve just had a seizure and they have to pick me up off of the ground, which has happened,” he added.