After years of advocacy from medical cannabis patients, New York passed the Compassionate Care Act in 2014, placing New York State in the company of two dozen other states that allow the legal use of medical cannabis. This was a win for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who suffer from a wide variety of health challenges and were able to obtain relief through medical-grade cannabis.
After years of work from the New York Medical Cannabis Industry Association (NYMCIA), thousands of patients, and many other advocacy partners, the State enacted the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA). This made New York the 15th state to legalize adult-use cannabis. The MRTA also included long-sought changes to the medical cannabis program:
Expanded qualifying conditions list
Healthcare practitioner discretion to recommend medical cannabis
Increased patient-day supply
Permitted whole flower
Increase in the number of medical dispensaries statewide from 40 to 80.
Though these changes are clearly outlined and mandated in the MRTA, medical patients are still waiting for some of them to come to fruition.
Creating a more affordable and accessible medical cannabis program remains a crucial part of NYMCIA’s continued advocacy. Removing the 7% excise tax, which would significantly lower the price and increase the accessibility of medical cannabis, is a key to achieving this goal.
