North Country Senator Joseph Griffo, R-Rome, has introduced a bill to get medical marijuana into the hand of people with serious medical conditions as soon as possible.

“If there is anything the Legislature can do to help relieve the painful suffering of critically ill patients, especially children with life-threatening forms of epilepsy, then we have a moral obligation to make it happens That’s why I have introduced a companion bill in the Senate that would give critically ill patients emergency access to medical marijuana as soon as possible,” Griffo said.

Griffo represents the 47th Senate District. It includes a swath running through the middle of St. Lawrence County, from Massena to Fine, including Potsdam.

The program will make medical marijuana accessible to patients with conditions including cancer, HIV/AIDS, Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel disease, neuropathies and Huntington's disease.

The law includes these conditions when there is a clinical association with or complication of the condition resulting in cachexia or wasting syndrome, severe or chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures, or severe or persistent muscle spasms. New York Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker may expand the list of eligible conditions for which medical marijuana certifications may be issued by practitioners, the statement from Griffo said.

“Critically ill patients, who endure more suffering with every passing day, cannot wait until the full medical marijuana program is up and running by early next year. We have urged the federal government to get involved in expediting this treatment, but they have ignored our pleas. And neither the Governor nor the State Health Department have taken any concrete steps to actually accelerate access for those in desperate need,” he said.

These bills are an additional attempt to resolve the issues that need to be addressed in order to expedite access to medical marijuana within the existing law, an email from Griffo said.

“My bill will mirror the pending legislation that has already been proposed by Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, D-Manhattan,” Griffo said.

Under the law, only medical marijuana dosage forms approved by DOH will be permissible for use. Registered organizations must contract with an independent laboratory in New York State to test the medical marijuana products.

Registered organizations will be able to dispense up to a 30-day supply of marijuana to certified patients with a valid registry identification card. Patients may only possess up to a 30-day supply of marijuana.

The marijuana will be dispensed in a sealed and properly labeled package, with a safety insert included. Patients must keep the medical marijuana in the original packaging in which it was dispensed.