DENNEY CONTRIBUTED TO HIS CURRENT PROBLEMS

While I loathe the feds for targeting doctors and medical marijuana
patients, it seems to me that Dr. Philip A. Denney contributed to his
current problems. Fred Gardner's recent piece left me wondering why
an undercover cop was able to easily talk his way into Denney's exam
room? Weren't any red flags raised when the narc's cover story didn't
check out? Couldn't Denney have taken the minimum sensible
precautions to protect himself, such as performing a detailed exam
instead of what appears to be a perfunctory one? Couldn't he have
held up issuing the actual recommendation pending authentication of
this total stranger's ID?

And for Denney to send a letter to the narc expressing shock that a
narc would lie, earth to the good doctor: that's what they're paid to
do. On the Internet, they make believe they're 13-year-old girls in
order to trap pedophiles. Sure, going after you is easier than going
after real criminals, but that's because you make it so easy. Raise
the level of your security, standards and paranoia, and the feds
won't be bothering you.

Jeff Meyers

Oak View, CA

FG Comments-

Bishop's letter makes some key points. Pain diagnoses are almost
always based on the patient's account of what he or she is
feeling. A doctor's willingness to prescribe or recommend drugs that
provide relief should not be influenced by fear of law enforcement...
Jeff Meyers is a journalist and filmmaker best known for a
documentary about Jack Herer, so I was surprised by the tone of his
letter and its false assumptions. Denney ITAL takes a detailed
history and performs a thorough exam. (I have observed him at work,
with patients' consent.) The narc's cover story ITAL did END ITAL
check out: he had a scar on his neck. It couldn't be confirmed that
he'd had previous treatment at a hospital in Santa Clara. Several
hospitals were phoned in vain -which shows that the office was
conscientiously trying to get supporting documentation. The doctor
has every right to decide that a patient's claims and physical
evidence suffice... More on Denney's situation in C Notes.