2021 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,  2028  and  Repealed  6 months after the full
cannabis control board created by Article 2 of the cannabis law has been
appointed