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Update: As of June 2017, Florida lawmakers have approved legislation that prevents doctors from using telemedicine to prescribe medical marijuana. Physicians must conduct a full physical examination and assess the medical history of the patient before prescribing medical marijuana.
Telemedicine Rule “64B8-90141, F.A.C.”, was revised by the Florida Board of Medicine, effective March 07, 2016. The amendment defines “telemedicine” as the practice of medicine by a licensed Florida physician, or physician’s assistant, where patient care, treatment or services, are provided by means of medical information exchanged from one locale to another by means of electronic communications.
Section 456.50(1)(2), F.S., enforces that the standard of care remains the same, irrespective of whether a Florida licensed physician, or physician’s assistant, provides health care services in-person or via telemedicine. The State Rule allows for the creation of a physician-patient relationship, via telemedicine. However, the Rule does NOT allow for the prescription of controlled substances — except for the treatment of psychiatric disorders — via telemedicine.
The Rule further stipulates that the practice of telemedicine, does NOT in any way, alter any of the physician or physician’s assistant obligations, regarding patient confidentiality and record-keeping; and does NOT apply to emergency medical services provided by emergency physicians, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), paramedics, and emergency dispatchers — emergency services include activities or services that prevent or treat a sudden critical illness or injury, and includes emergency medical care or prehospital emergency medical transportation to sick, injured or otherwise incapacitated individual’s, and excludes the treatment of patients with an emergency medical condition that required immediate medical care.
At this time, all health care practitioners providing telemedicine services, are required to first establish a physician-patient relationship with a patient, prior to providing a diagnosis or treatment — however, telemedicine may be used to satisfy this requirement.
All out-of-state health care practitioners intending to provide telemedicine services, to patients geographically situated in the state of Florida, must first obtain a valid medical license, from the Florida Medical Board, prior to commencing service — however, physician-to-physician (P2P) exemptions apply.
Qualified medical marijuana patients please be advised that for the purposes of using medical marijuana telemedicine services online, in Florida:
If you are a qualified Florida medical marijuana patient who has already established a bonafide relationship with a medical marijuana doctor, and want to see a marijuana doctor online and on-demand now, via the medical marijuana telemedicine portal, please click here.
HIPAA is a federal law that protects the privacy of identifiable patient information, requires electronic and physical security standards related to the storage and use of PHI, and establishes standard transactions and code sets to simplify billing and other electronic transactions. HIPAA standards were updated in 2009 by the implementation of the HITECH Act and again in 2013 by the HIPAA Omnibus Rule. In accordance with HIPAA standards, MarijuanaDoctors.com is HITECH and BAA certified, and has put in place measures to protect the confidentiality of health information in any form, whether written, oral, or electronic.
