NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A9562
SPONSOR: Gottfried
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to dosing limitations
and medical conditions permitting the medical use of marihuana
 
PURPOSE:
To allow medical marihuana to be used to treat additional diseases and
conditions and to remove the limit of ten milligrams of tetrahydrocanna-
binol per dose of medical marihuana
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends subdivision 15 of § 3360 of the Public Health Law to
remove the limit of ten milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol per dose of
medical marihuana.
Section 2: Amends subdivision 7 of § 3360 of the Public Health Law by
adding the following to the list of diseases and conditions treatable by
use of medical marihuana: Alzheimer's disease, traumatic brain injury,
dystonia, muscular dystrophy, wasting syndrome, post traumatic stress
disorder, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus.
Section 3: Effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
These conditions were included in the bill that initially passed the
Assembly and was expected to pass the Senate, but were deleted from the
final bill.
Expanding the list would offer critical treatment options to more
patients whose lives could be improved by medical marihuana. Some of
these conditions, such as PTSD and muscular dystrophy, are treated with
medical marihuana in other states. Other conditions are subject to ongo-
ing research, such as January 2016 findings from Israel showing poten-
tial benefits for Alzheimer's patients.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26757043)
It is questionable whether the law ought to limit the eligible condi-
tions at all. The law does not list eligible conditions for other drugs.
The medical marihuana law also places a limit of ten milligrams of
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per dose of medical marihuana. For some
patients, low THC products may be appropriate; for others, higher THC
may be. This decision should be made by a patient and his or her doctor
and not based on an arbitrary statute. The limit in the law has little
effect, because there is no limit on how many doses a patient may use at
a time.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.