Medical marijuana users are being declined to be placed on the transplant list because their doctors are prescribing them medical marijuana! This AP story brought to you by Yahoo takes you through the hurdles that Timothy Garon (a medical marijuana patient diagnosed with hepatitis C) has been going through to get placed on the transplant list for a replacement liver.

"No one tracks how many patients are denied transplants over medical marijuana use. Pro-marijuana groups have cited a handful of cases, including at least two patient deaths, in Oregon and California, since the mid-to-late 1990s, when states began adopting medical marijuana laws."

"Dr. Jorge Reyes, a liver transplant surgeon at the UW Medical Center, said that while medical marijuana use isn't in itself a sign of substance abuse, it must be evaluated in the context of each patient. "The concern is that patients who have been using it will not be able to stop," Reyes said."

When I first read this story I could not believe what I was reading. I personally find it absurd that we would decline a patient the chance at life for taking any medication that their doctor has prescribed them. Not only is marijuana far less addictive that prescription pain killers, it does not damage a patient's liver like some prescription medications do. In this case where the patient is receiving a liver transplant it is actually better for the transplanted organ. I will be doing more research into this, and promise to bring you more.

Update: Here's an editorial on the subject. Thanks alapoet!