NY to Relax Marijuana Laws

Now that David Brooks has copped to smoking pot, New York State is going to lighten up a little on its marijuana policy. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will announce this week plans to allow medicinal marijuana, state officials said Saturday. Not quite Colorado yet, and it won’t be for a while—Cuomo’s plan is far more restrictive than that state, or even California, where medical marijuana is available for people with conditions as mild as backaches. In New York, just 20 hospitals will be allowed to prescribe marijuana to patients with cancer, glaucoma, and other diseases set by the New York Department of Health. And the new laws don’t come without hurdles: it’s still illegal to grow marijuana in New York, even for medicinal use. The medical marijuana will likely have to come from the federal government or law enforcement agencies.