N.Y. lawmakers reach medical marijuana deal

Jun 21 2014

The agreement would allow doctors to prescribe it for a half-dozen medical conditions, but some lawmakers say the deal was more limited than they had hoped.

The New York Times: New York Leaders Reach Deal On Medical Marijuana
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and legislative leaders announced an agreement on Thursday for a pilot program to provide access to marijuana to sick New Yorkers, making the state one of the largest to embrace the drug's use as medicine (McKinley, 6/19). 

The Wall Street Journal: New York State Reaches Multiple Last-Minute Deals
After days of intense negotiations, the medical pot bill was more limited than many lawmakers wanted, after the governor warned he would sign it only with strict requirements. It would permit only doctors to prescribe marijuana, in forms including oil-based and vapor, to individuals with any of about a half-dozen conditions, including cancer, AIDS, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis (Orden, 6/19). 

Meanwhile, mothers of epileptic children push the federal government to change its classification of marijuana from 'no accepted medical use' -

The Washington Post: Fairfax, Frederick Moms Lobby Feds For Medical Marijuana For Kids With Epilepsy 
Beth Collins of Fairfax, one of two Northern Virginia mothers who have moved to Colorado to obtain medical marijuana oil for her daughter with epilepsy, is continuing the effort by mothers across the country to make the oil available for the thousands of families with children who have multiple seizures every day. ... Collins reached out to the Office of National Drug Control Policy to lobby for a shift in the federal scheduling of marijuana from its current classification of "no accepted medical use." On Monday she, her husband Patrick Collins and Shannon Moore of Frederick, who successfully advocated for medical marijuana in Maryland, had a conference call with high-level officials with the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the ONDCP (Jackman, 6/19).