STATE SUSPENDS 'MARIJUANA DOCTOR' LEVEQUE

The state Board of Medical Examiners suspended the medical license of Dr.
Phillip Leveque on Thursday, marking the second time in three years the
state has come down on Oregon's most prolific endorser of medical marijuana
applications.

Leveque said he and his attorneys met with the board's investigative
committee for nearly two hours in the morning. At 1:15 p.m., he was
notified that his license had been placed on emergency suspension pending
an investigation by the full board, he said.

"Somebody in Oregon doesn't want Oregon to be known as the medical
marijuana state," Leveque said.

Board officials could not be reached for comment after business hours Thursday.

Leveque is an 80-year-old semiretired osteopath from Molalla who first made
a name for himself in 2001 when it came to light that he had signed about
40 percent of all medical marijuana applications.

That notoriety drew the attention of the Board of Medical Examiners, which
in May 2002 suspended his medical license for 90 days, fined him $5,000 and
placed him on 10 years' probation.

State medical regulators punished Leveque in the 1980s, as well, for what
they described as improper treatment of pain.

In imposing discipline two years ago, the board ordered him to follow
accepted standards of medical care when signing for medical marijuana
patients. Specifically, that means: Reviewing medical records; taking
medical histories; conducting physical exams; meeting patients in person to
discuss the risks and benefits of treatment options; providing a written
treatment plan; and maintaining medical records.

After serving his punishment, Leveque resumed his unique practice. Working
with Voter Power, a Portland medical marijuana advocacy group, he would
appear at regular public clinics in Portland and along the Interstate 5
corridor to see patients and sign their applications.

His mug shot appeared in advertisements published in alternative
newspapers, publicizing the Voter Power clinics, with the headline, "Dr.
Leveque says, 'Cannabis gives the best relief.' "

Since his suspension, Leveque said, he believes he's followed conditions
placed on his practice by the Board of Medical Examiners and by the state
medical marijuana office.

Based on the questions from investigators, Leveque said he has been
suspended because he was not conducting physical exams or doing his own
diagnoses. Patients who came to see him were examined by a
nurse-practitioner before Leveque reviewed their medical records and asked
about their medical history.

Leveque estimates that he signed more than 4,000 applications, out of 7,500
total, since the program began in 1999. Asked if he believed he was
targeted because he has maintained a high public profile, Leveque said: "I
am the only doctor the Board of Medical Examiners knows who is signing
applications. There are 1,300 of them, but they only know me."

State officials said in January that 1,280 doctors had signed applications,
and that five had signed more than 100.