HUNTSVILLE | RICKEY STOKES NEWS
Medical cannabis could become available to Alabama patients within the next two to three months as dispensaries prepare to open across the state.
Huntsville family physician Dr. Clinton Scott Williams, who has practiced for more than 25 years, is one of the first five doctors certified to recommend medical cannabis in Alabama.
Williams said he will only recommend cannabis to established patients who may benefit and after more traditional treatments have been tried.
Interest has already been high, with people from across Alabama contacting his office seeking access. However, Williams emphasized he will not approve recommendations for patients he does not know.
Under Alabama law, doctors cannot write traditional prescriptions for medical cannabis. Instead, they can only recommend it through the state’s program, and it will not be covered by insurance.
Currently, 17 medical cannabis dispensaries have been licensed statewide.
Williams believes the treatment could offer a safer alternative for some patients suffering from pain or anxiety.
“If it can get them off habit-forming drugs like Xanax or Klonopin, or pain medications like fentanyl or oxycodone, I think it’s the lesser of two evils,” Williams said.
