Advice needed: Moving to Portland :)

Hey everyone! I have a few questions about Oregon and their medical marijuana policy, but first a little background:

I’m 21 years old and have lived here in Georgia my whole life. I’ve never been to the West Coast, but from what I’ve read on these forums and have seen on TV I feel like it would be a great place to start my life. I’m entering my senior year of college and once I graduate I have nothing else keeping me here (except my parents) unlike a lot of my friends who already have kids or legal troubles. I kind of feel like it’s a chance to escape and start fresh.

I feel like California would be awesome but it might be a little too expensive and hotter than I would like. Washington seems nice too, but maybe a little cold. So that leaves me with Oregon. I love nature and I imagine Oregon having a lot of forests for camping, mountains, rivers, beaches, & a liberal and peaceful mentality. I’d like to hear other people’s opinions of Oregon and the West Coast in general.

Obviously, one of the major reasons I want to live on the West Coast is medical marijuana. I love marijuana and have been smoking since I was 14 and I never want to quit. Many people around here are all about cocaine, pills, etc. but all I need is weed. I feel like it would be great to move to a friendly state where I don’t have to worry about getting arrested and my career goals squashed over a joint. I don’t have cancer, AIDS, or anything serious, I just have mild back pain. So here are my questions:

1) It says on the OMMP website “You must have an established patient/physician relationship with your ‘attending physician.’” So do I need to stay with the same doctor for a certain amount of time before I can get recommended? I'd hate to have to wait a whole year.
2) Since I have medical insurance now because I’m a student and won’t once I move out West, should I go ahead and start getting the pain documented by my doctor in Georgia? Will the OR doctor or OMMP take that into consideration?
3) What other advice can you give me? I’d love to hear what you have to say!

Thanks a lot! (=

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1B2_r6Azvg <-- Why I think Portland is cool
http://www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/ommp/facts.shtml <-- OMMP rules

So long as you can have your med records transfered to a doctor in Oregon you should be fine with the patient/physician relationship aspect of OMMP. The difficult part will be finding a doctor who will sign for you (without going to a clinic anyway). There are several clinics around the state that you should check out (MAMA and Voter Power are both good). They can help you through the process and are very knowledgeable about the program requirements.

As far as your medical insurance is concerned you should probably get as much documentation as possible on your back pain. It will be much more expensive without insurance. Also...mild back pain won't be enough to qualify you as the requirements are severe pain (keep that in mind).

Portland is a great place and most people really love it here (despite the many rainy days). I honestly don't think I could ever live anywhere but the West Coast. Good luck man.

Waffle-

Let me address several of your questions, as someone with first hand experience living in Oregon, specifically Portland. Throughout my life I have lived in California, New Mexico, Washington and Oregon. I will personally attest to just how spectacular Oregon(Portland) is as a permanent residence (I will be moving back there as some point I hope). Aside from the obvious reasons why it is excellent: one hour drive to the mountains/coast and all of the amenities of a large city without the pollution, traffic, crime etc. Portland is a marijuana aficionado's mecca.

Case in point, the medical marijuana laws are very liberal and most physicians are likely to sign off on your medical marijuana card. However, NOT as liberal as Colorado or California. For that reason I may suggest you "drum up" your current medical record before you leave Georgia, by seeing your current physician a couple of more times "complaining of worsening back pain". Tell me that you try taking NSIDS (anti-inflammatorys), but they make you have nausea and as a result you have tried smoking marijuana as a friend of yours has had much success easing his back/neck pain (as its associated with muscle spasms).

While your current, physician WON'T prescribe medical marijuana, he will document it in your medical records, which can then be used when you present your case to an Oregon physician. Any physician in Oregon, upon reading that in your records will gladly assist you with getting your medical card. Keep in mind here that you need to "elude" that your back pain DOES NOT originate from something mechanical such as a slipped disk or a deteriorating spine. What you need to do is connect it to something job/school related like constantly working on your computer and muscle cramps. This will prevent the idiot physician from ordering ridiculously expensive and unnecessary MRIs and X-Rays in an attempt to find a "diagnose". Let me know if this makes sense.

All of that being said, in the event you CAN'T get as license, keep in mind that under an ounce of possession is (A) Considered a joke by most cops and (B) Only a misdemeanor offense, ticketed similar to how a speeding violation.

-Patrick

PS ONLY draw back: it rains a lot during the winter months, but bring a rain jacket and be prepared to do much skiing/snowboarding as a way to pass the time.