Pubdate: Sun, 22 Jun 2014
Source: Oneida Daily Dispatch (NY)
Copyright: 2014 Oneida Daily Dispatch - a Journal Register Property
Contact:  http://www.oneidadispatch.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4546
Author: Michael Virtanen, The Associated Press
Page: A3

LEGISLATURE APPROVES MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL

The New York Legislature voted overwhelmingly Friday to legalize
marijuana to alleviate pain and other symptoms for some severely ill
patients, approving a compromise reached among legislative leaders and
Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The 49-10 approval by the Senate followed the 117-13 vote earlier
Friday by the Assembly. Cuomo was expected to sign it shortly.

It will make New York the 23rd state to legalize marijuana for medical
uses, but the drug won't be available in the state for at least 18
months while regulations are written and five producers and
distributors are state-approved and licensed. The Health Department
will establish appropriate doses, with prescriptions limited to 30
days and short extensions. Insurers won't pay for it, making it
essentially a cash business.

"If it were up to me, we would start tomorrow," said Sen. Diane
Savino, a Staten Island Democrat and chief Senate sponsor. "But we
have to work within the regulations that exist."

Many senators said it will help alleviate suffering of children with
seizure disorders, as well as others, while restrictions pushed by
Cuomo and Senate Republicans removed some concerns it will fuel
further drug addictions and expand the black market.

The bill doesn't allow the drug to be sold in plant form or smoked. It
could be administered through a vaporizer or in an oil base. Marijuana
could be prescribed for 10 diseases, including cancer, epilepsy, AIDS
and neuropathy.

It requires physicians to register and get a few hours of training to
prescribe it for patients with listed conditions, while establishing a
new felony for doctors who knowingly give it to others. Patients are
prohibited from sharing.

"The point about it is we've got a crisis," said Sen. William Larkin,
a military veteran and Orange County Republican whose committee vote
earlier was critical in advancing the bill. Among the disorders the
Health Department must consider whether to add to the treatment list
within 18months is post-traumatic stress disorder.

Some parents brought children in wheelchairs to lobby legislators,
saying the drug can hugely reduce the frequency of their seizures.
Advocates who watched the three hour Senate debate clapped and cheered
after the final vote.

Sen. Thomas Libous, a Binghamton Republican with metastatic cancer,
voted against the bill, saying the marijuana won't cure anything and
he's concerned it's giving people false hope.

Sen. Kemp Hannon, who chairs the Senate Health Committee, said there
should be peer-reviewed clinical trials first, not the Legislature
approving a new drug.
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MAP posted-by: Matt