New York state legislature adjourns without acting on medical marijuana bills

About 7,000 New Yorkers will die of wasting away because of cancer this year. Yet, unbelievably, trying to save their lives is a crime. Although medical marijuana has been shown to help more than three-quarters of chemotherapy patients who cannot relieve vomiting, nausea, or appetite loss with other medications, using medical marijuana at a doctor's advice is a crime in New York.

Unfortunately, the state legislature again failed to enact compassionate legislation that would change this travesty: The legislature adjourned on Friday without enacting legislation to allow the doctor-advised medical use of marijuana.

Please, take a moment to ask your legislators to put patients' lives over politics next year: Take action now. You can use our automated system to send a pre-written letter to your state senator and assembly member in a matter of minutes. Or, to have extra impact, you can write a handcrafted letter. If you have a personal or family experience with serious illness, please share it with your legislators.

Although it is discouraging that patients will remain criminals for another year for relieving their suffering, bear in mind that persistence pays off ... and that we are making progress in New York. Only three state legislatures have ever enacted medical marijuana laws (the other eight medical marijuana laws passed by initiative), and the two that were not supported by their states' governors were the result of several years of grassroots pressure.

So, please ask your legislators to support this compassionate legislation next year. Its supporters include the state's top health and medical organizations ' including the medical society, the nurses association, and the deans of the state's 14 medical schools ' Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morganthau; 43 co-sponsors in the assembly and main sponsor Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan); and Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Brunswick).

Please pass this message on to friends, family, neighbors, and e-mail lists in New York. With your help, we can make sure that no New York patient will have to fear arrest for battling his or her disease.