[JURIST] New York Governor Andrew Cuomo[official website] on Monday signed [press release] the Compassionate Care Act [text] into law, making New York the twenty-third state to legalize medical marijuana. The bill legalizes the possession, manufacture, use, delivery, transport or administration of medical marijuana by a designated caregiver for a certified medical use. It allows medical professionals to prescribe marijuana to patients with debilitating or life-threatening conditions such as terminal illness, severe chronic pain, nausea and other illnesses or as the commissioner deems appropriate. The legislation also requires patients to obtain a registry identification card, valid for a year, unless the patient is terminally ill, in which case the registration remains in effect until death. The bill also imposes an excise tax on the marijuana, which is only to be administered in ingestible or sublingual (dissolvable) form.
***
Related articles
- New York governor signs bill legalizing medical marijuana (jurist.org)
- Medical marijuana legal in NY (wbng.com)
- NY Governor signs medical marijuana bill, but it is a tough law (nvonews.com)
- Medical marijuana is now officially legal in New York (theverge.com)
lennyesq 