<big><big> I’m posting this for a valued, treasured friend in KP’s pain management program, who is put through drug testing for cannabis at least every 6 months or however often a doctor gets a wild hair to order the test, even as often as weekly if that doctor so chooses.
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My friend is very severely disabled now, both by congenital and acquired health problems (e.g., diabetes, injuries, surgeries, etc) as well as pain. But before Kaiser Permanente cut her opioid Rx waaaaaaay down, she was highly functional in every way and even able to earn a little income of her own.
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Even before KP cut the dose down, she had found that medical marijuana, used alongside a very small methadone dose, allowed her to be far more effective in daily life necessities for herself and spouse (who is now post-covid spouse ands in very bad shape).
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Yet she’s been told by her KaiserPerm doctors that if she ever tests positive for cannabis, she’s out of the pain-patient program and they will never allow her any opioids again.
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As Medicaid & Medicare patients, she and her spouse don’t have the income for buying as much mmj as would entirely replace her methadone prescription for the pain issues caused by many injuries & bodily damage across life, including an emergency hip replacement for an entirely necrotized-to-powder femur head (the part that should fit in the hip socket). ...which the doctors say needs replacement again in February… if there’s any room in the hospital in this very red California county with a disastrous covid situation….
So, if there are any KaiserPerm patients around DK whose doctors allow them to have both opioids and mmj, could you please comment to say how you were able to arrange that, or able to fight KaiserPermanente for it and win, or any other information you know of for making it possible.
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I'm using a very old limited computer to post this, so I might not be able to respond to many comments. But I will be giving the diary link to the friends who need this help, so they can read the comments and benefit from them.
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THANK YOU for reading and commenting whatever you can. And if it’s possible for you to share the diary around so more readers with info to supply might see it, that would be GREAT!!!
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BTW, for yr protection if you’re anxious about this, please feel free to post comments in 3rd-person form. Put your safety first. Thanks again, much appreciated.