Pubdate: Wed, 15 Jan 2014
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 2014 The New York Times Company
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Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Jesse McKinley

EVEN SUPPORTERS QUESTION CUOMO'S MARIJUANA PLAN

ALBANY - When Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced this month that he would
allow medical marijuana in New York, the news was greeted with great
enthusiasm by those who champion the drug for patients with cancer,
AIDS and other serious illnesses.

But the initial euphoria has abated, as those same supporters have
questioned Mr. Cuomo's plan, with few answers so far.

The administration has yet to detail the 20 hospitals statewide where
medical marijuana would be available, in what forms it would be
dispensed, or - perhaps most critically - where the state would get
its supply. Nor has the governor made clear what the plan would cost,
or who would pay for it.

And while advocates say they appreciate the governor's support, they
are using the uncertainty about his proposal, which hinges on an
obscure, never-implemented 1980 law, to push for new legislation that
would include specifics, like how patients, physicians, and producers
of marijuana would be chosen.

"The proposal that the governor has put forth is not the solution that
patients need in this state," said Gabriel Sayegh, the state director
for the Drug Policy Alliance, which lobbies for more liberal drug
laws. "It's great if they want to move something forward that gets the
ball rolling - cool, do it - but that, for us, is not the same thing
as a comprehensive system."

The governor's office says its proposal will work, and offered a few
more specifics on Tuesday. The administration intends to ask federal
authorities for permission to run a study of an "investigational new
drug," officials said, and aides to Mr. Cuomo have spoken in recent
days to federal officials about their plans. One option, state
officials say, would be to get marijuana from the federal government,
which grows marijuana for research purposes on a farm managed by the
University of Mississippi.

But advocates say that the 12-acre farm's yearly production capacity
of perhaps a few thousand kilograms may not be adequate to serve the
tens of thousands of New Yorkers who could be eligible for medical
marijuana. Under the governor's plan, federal health officials would
have to review New York's drug study before the state could ask the
federal government to provide it with marijuana.

Advocates for medical marijuana would prefer a system where
independent marijuana producers would be licensed, and would dispense
it not by prescription but on a health professional's recommendation,
as is done in some other states.

Mr. Cuomo's plan to have hospitals prescribe the drug, experts in
marijuana law say, is also complicated by the fact that the federal
government still views it as illegal, putting it on a similar legal
plane as heroin and cocaine.

Brian Vincente, a lawyer in Denver who was an author of Colorado's
landmark law permitting recreational use of marijuana, said the
federal prohibition meant that hospitals could be wary of
participating.

"Any facility that relies on federal money or grants is very reticent
to dispense or possess marijuana," he said.

Obtaining permission to study marijuana can also be difficult and very
time-consuming, Mr. Vincente added. "It takes decades," he said. "And
the federal government almost always says no."

But New York State officials disputed that; they said on Tuesday that
they were confident of success, and that hospitals performing
federally approved research into medical marijuana would not see other
federal money jeopardized.

"Criticism of the governor's proposal is premature," said Matt Wing, a
spokesman for the governor. "Past efforts to get legislation passed
haven't been successful, and we are taking action now to implement a
medical marijuana program that helps patients in need while limiting
the potential for abuse."

Two major hospital associations in New York said their members
supported the idea of medical marijuana but were awaiting details.

"Several hospitals have expressed interest in exploring the option of
providing medical marijuana to their patients," said Brian Conway, a
spokesman for the Greater New York Hospital Association, "but
recognize that a number of issues need to be addressed."

The questions around the plan have given new impetus to state
lawmakers sponsoring another piece of medical-marijuana legislation,
the Compassionate Care Act, which died last year in the Senate, where
Republicans share power.

Senator Diane J. Savino, a Staten Island Democrat who is a sponsor of
the Compassionate Care Act, expressed concern that Mr. Cuomo's
proposal might now lead some lawmakers to see medical marijuana as a
settled question. "In some respects it kind of took the wind out of
the sails on the Senate side," she said, "because their attitude is:
'Why do we need legislation? The governor said we are going to do this.' "

Still, supporters of medical marijuana praised the governor for taking
a stand in favor of it, even if it was not entirely clear how his plan
would become reality.

"We know you can do it," Mr. Sayegh said. "Other states have done it.
We can do it. And we can probably do it better."  
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