Yahoo – AFP,
8 January 2014
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo gives the State of the State address on January 8, 2014 in Albany, New York (AFP Photo/Spencer Platt) |
New York
(AFP) - New York governor Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that he will
authorize the medical use of marijuana, making his the 21st US state to do so
and one of the biggest.
Cuomo, a
Democrat who has in the past opposed such a measure, announced a limited pilot
program to serve the state of 19.5 million people.
"We
will establish a program allowing up to 20 hospitals to prescribe medical
marijuana," he said, during his annual state of the state speech in
Albany.
Cuomo
argued that research has suggested marijuana, which is widely but illegally
used recreationally, can help patients "manage the pain and treatment of
cancer and other serious illnesses.
"We
will monitor the program to evaluate effectiveness in the feasibility of
medical marijuana system," he added.
Cuomo, 56,
who last year spoke his support for decriminalizing the possession of up to 15
grams of the drug, is likely to proceed by decree, after four previous attempts
to legalize medical marijuana failed to get traction among the state's
lawmakers.
The
announcement comes as part of a growing movement to relax US laws around
marijuana.
Including
New York, the drug will soon be allowed, to various degrees, for medical
reasons in 21 of 50 states and in the capital, Washington.
The first
state to legalize medical marijuana was California, in 1996.
Colorado
has gone even further. Since January 1, recreational users older than 21 can
legally buy up to 28 grams of cannabis for their own enjoyment regardless of
their medical status.
The state
of Washington took a similar measure, to take effect in the coming months.
According
to an October 2013 Gallup poll, 58 percent of Americans are now in favor of
legalizing marijuana, and 14 states have in recent years decriminalized the
possession of small quantities of the drug.
Cuomo's
announcement comes at an interesting moment in New York politics, with the
arrival of Bill de Blasio -- further to the left than the governor -- as the
mayor of the state and America's biggest city.
Cuomo,
meanwhile, has been tapped as a possible presidential candidate in 2016, along
with his moderate Republican counterpart in neighboring New Jersey, Chris
Christie.
New Jersey
already authorizes marijuana for medical use within a strict framework.
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