The first amounts medical marijuana became available in New York dispensaries on Thursday. One of the dispensaries is located in Albany and the other one is in Kingston, others as scattered all over the state. One of the dispensaries, Columbia Care, is on 14th Street and will have medications available for those who are sick with diseases such as cancer and multiple sclerosis granted that the patients have certification from one of the 150 New York state doctors.
Columbia Care CEO Nicholas Vita said state licensed staff will be present in their dispensary. "We will have a state licensed pharmacist who will be on staff along with the rest of their colleagues and we will wait for patients to arrive to purchase New York state's first available medical marijuana products," Vita said, according to New York 1 News.
It took almost 18 months after the Compassionate Care Act was approved by Governor Andrew Cuomo. The legislation allows those who are sick to alleviate manifestations of their illness. Dr. Howard Zucker, the state's Health Commissioner, said they will have strict regulatory policies for the dispensaries.
"Our program ensures the availability of pharmaceutical-grade medical marijuana products for certified patients and establishes strict regulatory controls to protect public health and safety," Dr. Zucker said, according to Reuters. Only patients afflicted with serious and fatal diseases such as cancer, HIV, AIDS, Parkinson's, and epilepsy are allowed to legally purchase medical marijuana.
Physicians who are not registered with the New York State Department to prescribe medical marijuana can take a four-hour online exam which will be approved by the Commissioner, according to the New York State Medical Marijuana Program.
