Open Records Act Request - Low THC Oil Patient and Physician Counts in Georgia

Marion McNabb filed this request with the Department of Public Health of Georgia.
Status
Rejected

Communications

From: Marion McNabb

To whom it may concern,

Under the Georgia Open Records Act § 50.18.70 et seq., I am requesting an opportunity to inspect or obtain copies of public records that include:
1) An up-to-date epidemiological report of medical cannabis patients in Georgia. Specifically, requesting the numbers of medical patients Low THC Oil Patients in the DPH Registry by qualified health condition, and noting those newly registered by month and total active patients by month for each year from April 2015 - Oct 2020. Data is requested to be presented by month (new patients and total patients registered and active) from the start of the program in April 2015 until November 2020.
and

2) The Number of healthcare providers registered to recommend medical cannabis by location, newly registered and total active by month and year from the start of the program in April 2015 until November 2020.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter.

The Georgia Open Records Act requires a response time within three business days. If access to the records I am requesting will take longer than three days, please contact me with information about when I might expect copies or the ability to inspect the requested records.

If you deny any or all of this request, please cite each specific exemption you feel justifies the refusal to release the information and notify me of the appeal procedures available to me under the law.

Thank you for considering this request.

I look forward to receiving your response to this request within three days.

From: Department of Public Health

Sir/ Madam,

The Department is in receipt of your request for:

1. An up-to-date epidemiological report of medical cannabis patients in Georgia. Specifically, requesting the numbers of medical patients Low THC Oil Patients in the DPH Registry by qualified health condition, and noting those newly registered by month and total active patients by month for each year from April 2015 - Oct 2020; and
2. The Number of healthcare providers registered to recommend medical cannabis by location, newly registered and total active by month and year from the start of the program in April 2015 until November 2020.
The Department has considered your request and find that we are unable to provide either request. Pursuant to O.C.G.A. 50-18-72(2), public disclosure is not required for records that may lead to medical information or records as a matter of personal privacy. Furthermore, all applications for and information stored in the Low THC Oil Registry is confidential. O.C.G.A. §§ 31-2A-18(f) and 31-5-5; DPH Rule 511-5-11-.02(2). While there are 3 exceptions to this rule, none of them appear to apply to this circumstance.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.

Sincerely,
Nicole Medrozo
Associate General Counsel, Privacy Officer
Georgia Department of Public Health
2 Peachtree Street, 10th Floor, Room 398
Atlanta, GA 30303
(404) 858-4936 (cell)

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