The state Department of Health, in a report to be finalized and released in the coming days, will recommend a commercial and recreational marijuana program for New York, Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said Monday in Brooklyn.
“The pros outweigh the cons, and the report recommends a regulated legal marijuana program be available to adults in the state of New York,” Zucker said.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo has previously called marijuana a “gateway drug,” but in recent weeks said the “facts have changed” on the issue.
On Monday, Zucker said medical evidence does not show marijuana to be a gateway drug.
“When those facts change, we need to do a better analysis of that,” Zucker said. “This is no different than medicine. When new facts come in, you have new data.”
The details are yet clear on what age marijuana would be made available to New Yorkers and how a tax plan would be devised. At the same time, the DOH will add prescription opioid usage to the list of illnesses that qualify patients for the medical marijuana, Zucker said.
Zucker also told reporters Monday that the Department of Health will develop regulations giving people the choice of enrolling in the medical marijuana program if they have been prescribed opioids. While details are still being worked out, Zucker says the move could save "countless'' lives by preventing opioid addiction.
Zucker's agency cited research showing marijuana can reduce opioid use while eliminating the risk of overdose and reducing the risk of addiction.
The state's medical marijuana program is now open to patients with 12 physician-certified conditions, including cancer, HIV-AIDS and chronic pain. The program allows patients to use non-smokeable forms of marijuana.