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1 AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION HOUSE OF DELEGATES 2 3 4 Resolution: 229 5 (A-09) 6 7Introduced by: New York Delegation 8 9Subject: Medical Marijuana 10 11Referred to: Reference Committee B 12 (Monica C. Wehby, MD, Chair) 13 14 15Whereas, The New York State legislature has recently introduced a bill, not yet passed, which 16would legalize the medical use of marijuana; and 17 18Whereas, The Medical Society of the State of New York (MSSNY) has established a position 19with regard to the issue (see below); and 20 21Whereas, The MSSNY Committee on Addiction and Psychiatric Medicine has significant 22concerns wherein the current Presidential Administration has stated that it will not prosecute 23physicians for prescribing medical marijuana if state law allows them to do so and if they are 24following state law, but has not made clear if this is simply a decision not to prosecute or a 25reversal of a still existing Executive Order that forbade prescribing or recommending medical 26marijuana; and 27 28Whereas, The MSSNY Committee on Addiction and Psychiatric Medicine has also significant 29concerns regarding flaws in the laws, regulation, policy and practice in fact regarding marijuana 30use for medical purposes enacted or proposed in state laws elsewhere; therefore be it 31 32RESOLVED, That our American Medical Association offer assistance in seeking clear, 33indisputable confirmation from the federal government that physicians who follow the proposed 34New York State legislation if passed and regulation when subsequently developed will not be 35prosecuted for allegedly failing to follow the Presidential order still in place making it illegal for a 36physician to prescribe or even advise a patient to use marijuana for medical purposes (Directive 37to Take Action); and be it further 38 39RESOLVED, That our AMA seek a reversal of the Executive Order itself that makes it illegal for 40a physician to prescribe or advise medical marijuana. (Directive to Take Action) 41 42Fiscal Note: Implement accordingly at estimated staff cost of $1,000. 43 44Received: 05/14/09 45 46Note: This topic is currently under study by the CSAPH. 47 4875.987 Medical Marijuana: MSSNY adopts as policy that the use of marijuana may be appropriate when 49prescribed by a licensed physician solely for use in alleviating pain and nausea in patients who have been 50diagnosed as chronically ill with life threatening disease, when all other treatments have failed, that the 51physicians who prescribe marijuana for patient use, subject to the conditions set forth above, shall not be 52held criminally, civilly or professionally liable and that it supports continued clinical trails on the use of 53marijuana for medical purposes.