NYC Council Resolution 418

City Hall
New York, NY 10007 The New York City Council

Legislation Details (With Text)
File #: Version: * Res 0418-
2014
Name: Expand the Compassionate Care Act.
Status: Type: Resolution Committee
In control: Committee on Health
On agenda: Final action: 9/23/2014
Enactment date: Enactment #:
Title: Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature and the Governor to expand the
Compassionate Care Act, which legalized the medicinal use of marijuana.
Sponsors: Mark Levine
Indexes:
Attachments:
Action By Date Action Result Ver.
Introduced by Council City Council 9/23/2014 *
City Council 9/23/2014 *
Res. No. 418
Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature and the Governor to expand the Compassionate Care
Act, which legalized the medicinal use of marijuana.
By Council Member Levine
Whereas, On July 7, 2014, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the Compassionate
Care Act (CCA), making New York the 23
rd
state to legalize medicinal marijuana; and
Whereas, This law recognizes and affirms progress in the medical community concerning the
therapeutic value of medicinal marijuana; and
Whereas, The CCA is a historic step forward in providing vital medical assistance to New Yorkers
suffering from debilitating and life-threatening medical conditions, such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinsons Disease, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord damage, inflammatory bowel
disease (Crohns Disease), neuropathies, and Huntingtons Disease; and
Whereas, However, the CCA has several restrictions that unnecessarily burden those in the most need
from obtaining and using medicinal marijuana in an effective and timely way; and
Whereas, The CCA prohibits patients from choosing to administer their medicinal marijuana through
The New York City Council Printed on 9/23/2014 Page 1 of 3
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File #: Res 0418-2014, Version: *
Whereas, The CCA prohibits patients from choosing to administer their medicinal marijuana through
smoking, leaving options such as edibles, oils, and vaporization up to the discretion of the New York State
Department of Health (DOH); and
Whereas, Administering medicinal marijuana through vapor requires the purchase of a vaporizer unit,
which can cost hundreds of dollars, and thus be prohibitively expensive for patients desperately in need; and
Whereas, Smoking medicinal marijuana provides rapid and efficient delivery, according to a 2012
report authored by researchers at the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research, University of California, San
Diego, published in The Open Neurological Journal; and
Whereas, Smoking medicinal marijuana has not been proven to impair lung function, according to the
Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) report, a twenty-year longitudinal study
published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in January 2012; and
Whereas, Of the 22 other states that have legalized medicinal marijuana, Minnesota is the only other
state to have banned smoking; and
Whereas, Based on evidence of its effectiveness and cost considerations, the CCA should be amended
to allow physicians the ability to choose the method of administering medicinal marijuana, including the option
of smoking it; and
Whereas, The CCA does not include debilitating and severe medical conditions such as Alzheimers
Disease, muscular dystrophy, dystonia, post-traumatic stress disorder, and rheumatoid arthritis, that are among
the top medical conditions for which medicinal marijuana is prescribed; and
Whereas, The CCA gives DOH an 18-month period of consideration for the admission of these
diseases; and
Whereas, Therefore, the Compassionate Care Act should be expanded immediately to include
Alzheimers Disease, muscular dystrophy, dystonia, post-traumatic stress disorder, and rheumatoid arthritis;
and
Whereas, An interim emergency access program should be implemented that would expedite medicinal
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File #: Res 0418-2014, Version: *
Whereas, An interim emergency access program should be implemented that would expedite medicinal
marijuana approval and delivery mechanisms to bring faster relief to patients in urgent need and under dire
threat of serious medical consequences; and
Whereas, The CCA permits only five organizations a total of 20 dispensaries (four each) to produce
and dispense medicinal marijuana to the entire geographic region of New York State, which is among the
nations largest, most densely populated state; and
Whereas, Acknowledging New York States geographic size and population, the CCA should be
amended to allow for a greater number of authorized medicinal marijuana suppliers and also increase the
corresponding dispensary limit; and
Whereas, According to New York Physicians for Compassionate Care, a coalition of over 600 New
York physicians, medicinal marijuana is more tightly regulated than any other medication, including more
dangerous medications that are routinely prescribed; and
Whereas, Expanding the CCA will ensure patients find the relief they need by removing hurdles to
obtaining a necessary medicine prescribed by their doctor; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature and the
Governor to expand the Compassionate Care Act, which legalized the medicinal use of marijuana.
MGL/CP
LS# 2369
9/18/14
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