Pubdate: Sat, 23 Jul 2011
Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (NY)
Copyright: 2011 Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Contact:  http://www.democratandchronicle.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/614
Author: Cara Matthews
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

GOV. ANDREW CUOMO STUDYING LEGALIZING MEDICAL MARIJUANA

ALBANY -- After a legislative session with no progress on legalizing 
medical marijuana, advocates are hoping that the New Jersey 
governor's actions last week and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's 
statement that he is studying the issue will lead to success.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, said his state would 
move forward with its medical-marijuana act, a reversal from his 
position last month. He said at the time that he had concerns the 
state legislation conflicts with federal law and practice.

The U.S. Justice Department earlier this month said it is focused on 
large-scale commercial providers.

Cuomo, a Democrat, has not supported medical marijuana in the past, 
and he said last week he has not changed his position.

He did, however, leave the door open on the issue.

"We have proponents of the policy. I know New Jersey's looking at it. 
We have opponents of the policy," he said. "We're talking to both 
sides of the issue, if you will, and we're reviewing it, but we don't 
have a final position."

The governor said that while he hasn't changed his stance, "we're 
always learning and listening and talking and growing, we hope."

New Jersey became the 16th state to legalize medical marijuana under 
legislation signed by Christie's predecessor.

Legislation to allow patients with debilitating illnesses to use 
marijuana if they are registered with the state and receive a 
prescription from their physician has passed the Assembly before but 
never the Senate.

Under the bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Richard Gottfried and Sen. 
Thomas Duane, both Manhattan Democrats, hospitals and pharmacies 
would do the bulk of the dispensing. The maximum amount that could be 
dispensed would be 2.5 ounces.

"The big obstacle continues to be getting a couple more votes in the 
state Senate to enable it to pass," Gottfried said.

The Democrat-controlled Assembly didn't vote on the bill this year, 
only because of the difficulty in getting it through the GOP-led Senate.

Getting the support of the governor would help immensely, said 
Gottfried, adding that he has been in conversations on the matter 
with members of Cuomo's administration who are reviewing the issue.

"My gut feeling or prediction is that when that's done, he will 
support legislation because I think the merits are overwhelmingly in 
support and I think certainly, to the extent he relies on health 
(professionals') viewpoints, I think it's a very clear decision," 
Gottfried said.

He said the governor should "focus on the thousands of New Yorkers 
who are needlessly suffering from life-endangering and debilitating 
conditions whose lives could be made more tolerable and longer if we 
would join the other states that allow medical use."

If the governor gets behind medical marijuana, "it can make all the 
difference in the world," said Gabriel Sayegh, New York director of 
the Drug Policy Alliance.

But the legislation has significant opponents, including the state 
Conservative Party, which held sway in the recent Senate vote to 
approve same-sex marriage by threatening not to re-endorse any 
Republicans who voted yes. Four of them voted yes anyway.

"I don't see how marijuana helps anybody with any kind of sickness," 
said Michael Long, head of the Conservative Party. "There's plenty of 
prescribed drugs that people can take when they are critically ill."

He said if New York adopted a medical-marijuana law, it would be in 
conflict with the federal law that marijuana is an illegal drug. 
Legalizing it would only add to law enforcement problems, he said.

"I am telling you that it will create an enforcement nightmare. 
There'll be no control over it," Long said.

Gottfried said he thinks Christie's move confirms what has been clear 
since the Obama administration and even under the Bush 
administration, "that entities that produce or dispense in clear 
compliance with state law are not going to be interfered with by the 
federal government and the federal government has never gone after 
individual patients."

Sayegh said if the legislation passed, New York would have one of the 
most conservative medical marijuana laws in the country.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom