PENNSYLVANIA, USA — There are two dozen approved conditions that allow people to be certified for the use of medical cannabis in Pennsylvania, but the Commonwealth’s laws regarding the products don’t go much further than that.

In fact, physicians have little input over their patients’ use of the drugs outside of approving their certification.

That’s something that doctors with experience in the field want to see change.

“I can’t see what my patients are purchasing at dispensaries,” says Ari Greis, an orthopedic doctor who uses medical cannabis to help treat patients with chronic pain.

 Greis believes Pennsylvania’s loose laws surrounding cannabis need to be reconsidered — especially due to the uncertainty behind the product’s use and its potential for intoxication.

“Cannabis is generally safe for most people, but it’s not safe for everybody, and I do think that, like other drugs, giving clinicians the control over the dosing would be advisable,” he said.

He also believes that tighter restrictions on lab testing would help improve quality of care.

State Representative Dan Frankel is the sponsor of a bill that looks to strengthen testing protocols and says the labs themselves are not always acting in good faith.

“Testing labs are often not providing accurate information. Let’s say they will inflate the THC levels [and] ignore if they’re adulterated with other products or if there’s mold,” he said.

Frankel says increased oversight of the medical industry is not only a public health benefit but could be a steppingstone to further legalization as well.

“That’s important for consumers of medical marijuana, and it will be very important as we move forward, inevitably, to an adult-use cannabis marketplace,” he said.

For now, Greis says many of his patients have responded well to his treatment despite his concerns.

“I think a lot of the patients that were able to get off of opioids that are much more habit-forming and addictive are really thrilled that they are no longer controlled by those drugs, and they’re oftentimes getting better pain relief,” he said.

Frankel’s House Bill 33 was passed through the house last March and is currently awaiting a committee vote in the Senate.