The topic of this video is how does a medical marijuana card affect a personal injury case in Florida. Now, this is a completely new area of law that we as personal injury attorneys are experiencing here in Florida. And what prompted this video was, uh, I attended a seminar yesterday by, uh, it was conducted on the, uh, the new changes in Florida medical marijuana laws in Florida. And they’re, one of the presentations was by a representative of one of the pharmacies. So like the retail marijuana stores, you know, the, the store that you would go into and have your prescriptions filled. And I asked the question of him, um, are you getting any type of subpoenas? I’m inquiring about the, the, the filling of prescription and the prescription record. And this was the guy that was in charge of, of handling the responses to all the subpoenas that came in, uh, and is actually located in Saint Petersburg, Florida.
And he said that yes, in fact, they get a ton of subpoenas and they’re always by insurance defense lawyers, not law enforcement, not plaintiff’s lawyers, insurance defense lawyers. And obviously specifically related to personal injury cases. So it really made me think, okay, well how is this going to affect my clients and also the citizens of Florida moving forward when the insurance companies are clearly probing those medical marijuana records. So there are a few things to look for when getting a medical marijuana card in Florida. The first is, uh, the date of when you get the card right? That’s really the first analysis. So you go to a doctor, you have to tell the doctor, uh, that you meet a qualifying condition. And for many of our personal injury clients, that’s going to be some type of chronic pain condition. So if you’ve been to a doctor prior to the issuance or prior to the, to the, uh, the accident, uh, that you’re making a claim over, they’re going to want to pull those medical records from the doctor and probe.
Okay. What were you complaining about? Did you mention your neck or your back injuries or whatever happened in this accident? Or did you fail to mention them? And if you did mention something that is now repeated in this claim, then they’re going to blame a preexisting condition. The other thing is what happens after the accident? If you go in after an accident and then are complaining about chronic pain, they’re going to be looking at, okay, what are the complaints to the medical marijuana doctor? The same as the complaints to your other treating physicians? Or did they somehow change and they’re going to bring that up. And don’t forget you have to go back with a medical marijuana card every six months to get it to get it renewed by your, uh, by your doctor. So they’re going to pull those records every six months. Now, in terms of the pharmacy records, I’m trying to figure out what exactly the relevance and why they continue to or why they’re subpoenaing all of those records.
And I think, uh, it’s, it’s really two fold a number one, if you had a medical marijuana card at the time of the accident, I think they’re going to be looking at, um, an allegation that you were taking marijuana and somehow impaired as of the time of the accident. In other words, your reactions were slower, you weren’t paying attention because you, uh, you were under the influence of marijuana by taking your medicine. So I think they’re going to try to deflect that way. I also think that the secondary approach that these insurance companies are going to take is to, uh, use the fact that you received medical marijuana as an attack on your pain and suffering. And I think they’re going to try to get that in front of a jury and hopefully get some conservative jurors. You know, people, I mean [inaudible] or, I mean marijuana has been illegal for decades.
So to many people, the fact that a client slash plaintiff is receiving medical marijuana may be looked at skeptically. And so I think the underlying current is, okay, is this person really hurt or are they just using this auto accident as an excuse to get a medical marijuana card and be able to, uh, uh, take, uh, marijuana in whatever form. So I think that’s sort of the underlying current there. So, uh, they’re going to be a lot of repercussions from getting a medical marijuana card on personal injury cases that the insurance lawyers are going to use. Uh, any opportunity that they can, uh, to the disadvantage of the plaintiffs. So it’s something to think about in all personal injury cases in Florida auto, a motorcycle car, a slip and fall, you name the injury, they’re going to be looking for those records as to medical marijuana and it’s gonna, it’s going to become a new area that all lawyers and clients, uh, need to be on the same page about. So hopefully that answers the question and provide some enlightenment on this topic.
*The above has been transcribed by a third party service and has not been checked for accuracy.
Contact a Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident, then you should take the proper measures to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. Contact St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas today and speak with an attorney. For over 60 years our firm has been successfully helping people who have been injured due to someone else’s carelessness. We have been nationally ranked for decades by US News and World Reports as a Tier 1 law firm, which is the highest ranking that can be received. Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas have dedicated their careers to continuing the firms legacy of superior legal representation.
Remember that we never charge a fee, unless we win. Call us today at 727-381-2300 so that we may answer your questions, help you navigate the complexities of insurance claims, and recover the compensation that you deserve.
We work hard to make sure each and every client gets the attention that they deserve. We appreciate feedback from our clients and reviews are validation of our work. Every 5-star review that we receive lets us know that our services were appreciated by our clients.
St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas
5858 Central Ave suite a, St. Petersburg, FL (727) 381-2300
5 out of 5 based on 20 reviews
Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas were voted best personal injury attorneys in Saint Petersburg, Florida for 2019.
