In order to get a medical marijuana card, you have to provide medical records that show you have one or more of the
qualifying conditions under Ohio law.
Doctors create medical records when they see you. Not all medical records are complete, so be sure that your records talk about the qualifying condition or conditions that you claim. Bills from your doctor, disability statements, or any form you fill out yourself are NOT medical records.
Under the law, the only records we can review are those from an M.D. or D.O. Also according to the law, your records must be from physicians in Ohio. We are not allowed to confirm a qualifying condition based on records from a doctor practicing in another state.
Special note about post-traumatic stress disorder: We do recognize that PTSD is a qualifying condition and that most people with this problem see counselors and therapists but not psychiatrists. To confirm a PTSD diagnosis made by a non-physician, our doctors will ask you questions about what happened and what symptoms you are having now. In that way, you can have your PTSD diagnosis confirmed by a doctor – an Ohio Green ReLeaf doctor. Our goal is not to make you feel uncomfortable, but we have to follow the rules set out for us by the state.
Special note about pain: The qualifying condition is pain that is either chronic and severe, or intractable. “Chronic” means at least three months, “severe” generally means bad enough to seek medical treatment for it, and “intractable” means that nothing helps it. If you produce records that, for example, say you had low back pain and back surgery years ago, that isn’t proof your pain is ongoing. You must have relatively current records that document you have pain now and that it isn’t getting better despite regular medical treatment.
The fastest way to get your card is to be sure Ohio Green ReLeaf has your records at the time of your visit.
There are five ways to get medical records to us:
1) If you have paper copies of your records, you can either scan and upload them to our website or bring in copies when you visit. We’ll make copies since Ohio requires us to keep them for three years.
2) You can fill out the release form on our website and electronically sign it. We’ll fax it to your doctor. This usually is the slowest way to get medical records. We will need your Doctors office number and fax number.
3) You can print the release form, sign it, and hand-deliver it to your doctor’s office (or to the hospital, if you were hospitalized because of your qualifying condition). Don’t expect that they will give your records while you are standing there, though.
4) If your doctor or hospital uses MyChart, you can ask for your records after you log on to the
MyChart site. Here’s how: (a) Under the “Messaging” tab, select “request your doctor’s office record.” If you’ve been in the hospital because of your qualifying condition, also select “request your hospital record.” It might take a few days for those records to become available. (B) When you’re notified that the records are ready, go back into MyChart. Under the “Health” tab, go to “Document Center” and then “Visit Records.” From there choose either the last visit to your doctor or the “Lucy Summary.” Download those records and either bring copies with you or upload them to our website.
5) Fax them directly to us: 513-802-5324
