Medical card vs Insurance card

 

Medical marijuana is useful for so many people across the state. It serves to provide relief for people with different medical conditions. Furthermore, many people consider medical marijuana as a great alternative to prescription pills.

 

Recently, patients are considering choosing a medical card over an insurance card. With the rise of medical marijuana as a genuine treatment, insurance cards experience some decline. In this article, we will focus on medical card vs insurance card. This will help determine if you should choose cannabis treatment or continue with prescription pills. So, how does a medical card compare with an insurance card?

 

Why is medical marijuana not covered by insurance?

Medical marijuana offers a lot of benefits but it’s still not under medical insurance. While insurance providers provide information regarding medical cannabis, they don’t usually cover it. Some states even cover medical marijuana appointments but don’t cover the purchase of medical marijuana itself.

 

In most states, medical marijuana is not under medical insurance. The reason for this is that the legalization of medical cannabis is still new for many people. Some state administrators may not know about marijuana until recently. Also, insurance companies are not ready to work with medical marijuana since its federally illegal. Therefore, there are some complications in the way.

 

Can insurance cover medical cannabis?

Many individuals who want medical cannabis cannot afford it. Therefore, the lack of insurance coverage keeps it away from those who need it.

 

While medical marijuana is legal in some states, it's illegal on the federal level. Therefore, there is still a lot in terms of insurance coverage for medical marijuana. Medical marijuana cards can provide discounts at dispensaries. However, if they have insurance the discounts will further increase.

 

On the other hand, insurance cards cover your health. It covers the cost of prescription medications but not medical marijuana. Therefore, there’s a need for insurance companies and cannabis companies to work in hand. This will make those with insurance cards gain discounts on marijuana. It will also make those with medical cards have insurance with buying cannabis.

 

Comparing Medical card to insurance card

Generally, concerning medical card vs insurance card, they don’t cover each other. Insurance like Medicare does not cover medical cannabis. However, there are some exceptions such as the FDA-approved epilepsy drug Epidiolex. Also, the anorexia drugs Cesamet, Marinol, and Syndros have insurance coverage.

 

Unless you are buying a prescription for FDA-approved drugs like Epidiolex, medical cannabis may incur some costs. These costs vary across states and usually include the following:

 

Individuals must pay the cost of medication. These costs usually vary depending on where you live and the amount. Medical cardholders don’t pay any cost of medication they just visit the dispensary and buy products.

 

Bottom line

When comparing medical card vs insurance card, we see a lot of differences and similarities. However, if you want discounts when buying prescriptions drugs choose an insurance card. If you want discounts when buying from a dispensary, choose a medical card.