2017 New York Laws
PBH - Public Health
Article 33 - Controlled Substances
Title 5-A - Medical Use of Marihuana
3361 - Certification of Patients.

*   3361.  Certification  of patients. 1. A patient certification may
  only be issued if: (a) a  practitioner  has  been  registered  with  the
  department  to  issue a certification as determined by the commissioner;
  (b) the patient has a serious condition, which shall be specified in the
  patient's health care  record;  (c)  the  practitioner  by  training  or
  experience  is qualified to treat the serious condition; (d) the patient
  is under the practitioner's continuing care for the  serious  condition;
  and  (e)  in  the practitioner's professional opinion and review of past
  treatments, the patient is likely to receive therapeutic  or  palliative
  benefit  from  the  primary  or adjunctive treatment with medical use of
  marihuana for the serious condition.
2. The certification shall include (a) the name,  date  of  birth  and
  address  of  the patient; (b) a statement that the patient has a serious
  condition and the patient is  under  the  practitioner's  care  for  the
  serious  condition;  (c)  a statement attesting that all requirements of
  subdivision one of this section have been satisfied; (d) the  date;  and
  (e)  the  name,  address, federal registration number, telephone number,
  and the  handwritten  signature  of  the  certifying  practitioner.  The
  commissioner  may  require by regulation that the certification shall be
  on a form provided by the department. The practitioner may state in  the
  certification  that,  in  the  practitioner's  professional opinion, the
  patient would benefit from medical  marihuana  only  until  a  specified
  date.  The  practitioner  may  state  in  the certification that, in the
  practitioner's professional opinion, the patient is terminally  ill  and
  that the certification shall not expire until the patient dies.
3. In making a certification, the practitioner shall consider the form
  of medical marihuana the patient should consume, including the method of
  consumption   and  any  particular  strain,  variety,  and  quantity  or
  percentage of marihuana or particular active ingredient, and appropriate
  dosage.  The  practitioner  shall  state  in   the   certification   any
  recommendation  or  limitation  the  practitioner  makes,  in his or her
  professional opinion,  concerning  the  appropriate  form  or  forms  of
  medical marihuana and dosage.
4.  Every  practitioner shall consult the prescription monitoring drug
  program registry prior to making or issuing  a  certification,  for  the
  purpose  of  reviewing  a  patient's  controlled  substance history. For
  purposes of this section, a practitioner may  authorize  a  designee  to
  consult  the  prescription  monitoring  program  registry  on his or her
  behalf, provided that such designation is  in  accordance  with  section
  thirty-three hundred forty-three-a of this article.
5.  The  practitioner  shall  give  the certification to the certified
  patient, and place a copy in the patient's health care record.
6. No practitioner shall issue a certification under this section  for
  himself or herself.
7.  A  registry  identification  card  based  on a certification shall
  expire one year after the  date  the  certification  is  signed  by  the
  practitioner.
8.  (a)  If  the practitioner states in the certification that, in the
  practitioner's professional opinion,  the  patient  would  benefit  from
  medical marihuana only until a specified earlier date, then the registry
  identification card shall expire on that date;
(b)  If  the  practitioner  states  in  the  certification that in the
  practitioner's professional opinion the patient is  terminally  ill  and
  that the certification shall not expire until the patient dies, then the
  registry  identification card shall state that the patient is terminally
  ill and that the registration card shall not expire  until  the  patient
  dies;

(c)  If  the practitioner re-issues the certification to terminate the
  certification on an earlier date, then the registry identification  card
  shall  expire  on  that  date  and  shall  be  promptly  returned by the
  certified patient to the department;
(d) If the certification so provides, the registry identification card
  shall  state  any recommendation or limitation by the practitioner as to
  the form or forms of medical  marihuana  or  dosage  for  the  certified
  patient; and
(e)   The  commissioner  shall  make  regulations  to  implement  this
  subdivision.
9.(a) A certification may be a special certification if,  in  addition
  to   the  other  requirements  for  a  certification,  the  practitioner
  certifies in the certification that the patient's serious  condition  is
  progressive  and  degenerative  or that delay in the patient's certified
  medical use of marihuana poses a serious risk to the patient's  life  or
  health.
(b)  The  department  shall  create  the form to be used for a special
  certification and shall make that form available to be  downloaded  from
  the department's website.
* NB Repealed July 5, 2021