He ruled that he had no authority to grant the medical health emergency exception because such an order would essentially overturn the Control Substances Act. The OCBC appealed to the Ninth Circuit. The city of Oakland declared a public health emergency and supported the OCBC's petition for relief. The appeals panel agreed that the the OCBC's request was in the public interest and overturned Judge Breyer's decision. If the patient does not have access to cannabis, he or she will suffer grave harm.
Cannabis is necessary for the treatment of the patient's condition.
There is no legal alternative to cannabis for the effective treatment of the patient's medical condition. Judge Bryer's ruling was bound to be overturned since the OCBC had modeled their medical necessity guidelines based on criteria established by the Ninth Circuit in a previous ruling. In that case, the court had crafted an injunction that was broad enough to prohibit illegal conduct but narrow enough to include conduct that would be legally privileged or justified in the public interest. The appeals court also found that the government did not identify any interest in blocking cannabis distribution other than an interest in enforcing its laws. Moreover, the court noted that the government offered no evidence to refute OCBC's contention that doctor-prescribed cannabis relieved the pain and suffering of a large group of people.