N.Y. medical marijuana plan could jeopardize hospital funding

Health systems that participate in New York’s plan to distribute medical marijuana could run afoul of federal laws, jeopardizing their government funding, according to advocates in that state. Hospitals in other states where medical pot is legal have steered clear of distributing the drug for fear of running afoul of federal laws—and possibly losing government funding.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo could use a 1980 state law to allow 20 hospitals in New York to distribute the drug to patients suffering from cancer, glaucoma, or other approved diseases. However, the law does not explicitly allow hospitals to buy the drug or to sell it to patients. Medical marijuana advocates say the law only allows for the use of marijuana that comes from the federal government or local drug busts, which may not be medical-grade marijuana. That could mean a medical marijuana program would have to be funded through the state Department of Health.

Source: Crain’s New York Business