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California doctor loses license after prescribing pot cookies to curb 4-year-old's temper tantrums
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California doctor loses license after prescribing pot cookies to curb 4-year-old's temper tantrums

The Los Angeles physician was found 'grossly negligent' for improperly diagnosing the child with ADHD

A California doctor who prescribed pot cookies to curb a 4-year-old boy's temper tantrums has lost his license to practice medicine, KNBC-TV reported.

Dr. William Eidelman of Los Angeles also improperly diagnosed the child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and bipolar disorder before prescribing marijuana treatment, the Medical Board of California announced last month. On his website, Eidelman describes himself as a natural medicine physician.

The medical board found the 69-year-old physician "grossly negligent." His license was revoked Jan. 4, but he has reportedly continued to practice medicine, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"The judge ruled that the revocation is stayed, so yes, I'm still practicing," Eidelman told the Times.

The board's website lists his license as revoked.

What's the story?

The license revocation stems from a September 2012 case involving a young boy — referred to as "T.T." in the documents — who was taken to the doctor for behavioral problems, the medical board report said.

The father — referred to as "L.T" in the documents — had a previous history with Eidelman and had been prescribed marijuana for "medical purposes."

The documents stated that L.T. and an older son who suffered from ADHD and bipolar disorder had "found cannabis more effective" than standard medications prescribed for such conditions.

The doctor allegedly diagnosed T.T. with ADHD after a 30-minute consultation with the boy. Eidelman made the diagnosis without assessing the boy's medical records, consulting a psychiatrist, or utilizing other diagnostic methods.

Eidelman wrote in the boy's chart that he had a "probable combination of ADD/ADHD and bipolar disorder" and he should "try cannabis in small amounts in cookies," according to the medical board's decision.

"Tantrums alone do not support either diagnosis," the board's decision said. "Being agitated and having trouble sitting still hint at ADHD, but could simply hint at a preschooler not happy to have driven many miles to a doctor's appointment."

Initially, L.T. served the boy a morning cookie with "small amounts of the cannabis," but then he tried to increase the dosage by adding an additional amount in T.T.'s lunch. Law enforcement and child protective services got involved after the school nurse reported the matter.

What did the board say about prescribing cannabis to the boy?

While the board didn't specifically find fault with Eidelman recommending marijuana to the child, it did state that it was improper because the boy didn't have ADHD.

"It has not been established, by clear and convincing evidence, that the recommendation of medical marijuana to (the boy), with his father's consent, violated the standard of care," the board wrote.

What else?

The board took into account that Eidelman had been punished in 2000 and 2001 for prescribing marijuana to several undercover investigators.

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