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Welcome to the home of New Yorkers for Compassionate Care (NYCC)
We are here to advocate for the bills currently in the NY State Assembly and Senate which would allow seriously ill patients in NY access to cannabis as medicine.

Your support will help New York Medical Marijauna Bills get passed into law!  
In the NY State Assembly A.4867.

Patients' voices needed to pass medical marijuana legislation  

In June, Assemblyman Richard Gottfried's marijuana legislation, A4867, passed the Assembly and came to the brink of becoming law. But now it's stalled in the state Senate, and senators need to hear that seriously ill patients are counting on them. If you are a seriously ill patient, or if you have recovered from a serious illness, please write Karen O'Keefe at Karen@nycompassionatecare.org to see how you can help get this legislation moving. You can be involved as much or as little as you feel comfortable.
For the past 10 years, Assemblyman Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan) has introduced legislation that would protect the seriously ill from arrest. Since his bill was first introduced, 11 other states have protected their medical marijuana patients. In New York, momentum has steadily built. The state medical society, medical schools, and nurses association voiced their support. And, finally, in June, the state Assembly voted 95-52 to approve the bill.

But the Senate has not yet acted on the issue and hundreds of patients in New York still go to bed every night, afraid that their doors will be kicked in for using their medicine.

The legislature just reconvened, and it's time for you to let your senator know that this injustice must end: The seriously ill shouldn't have to risk arrest to use the medicine their doctors say will work best.

Here's how you can help:

1) Send an e-mail to your state senator today.

You can use the pre-written letters there or — better yet — write your own. After you're happy with the letter, simply type in your name and address, and our automated system will send it to your state senator.

2) Call your state senator.

Click here to find out who your state senate representative is by zip code. This will show you who it is, and provides a link to a page with all of their info. Call their office and ask to make a comment. Before making the call, you might want to take a look over our background sheet about the bill; we've provided talking points and answers to some common questions.

3) Spread the word!

Please pass this on to your friends, family, and e-mail lists to urge others to contact their state senators. We've seen constituent pressure convince legislators to stand up for patients in Vermont and Rhode Island. Now, we need your help to bring compassion to the Statehouse in New York.

Thank you for supporting NYCC. Please tell your friends and family about this page, so that even more voices for reform can be heard.

Recent poll shows Conservative Party members support medical marijuana

Ask your state senator to protect New York's seriously ill from arrest

A newly released poll shows that the majority of New York state's Conservative Party members support allowing medical marijuana! That's right: A July poll found that 55% of Conservative Party members support allowing patients to grow and use marijuana with their doctors' approval, and only 35% oppose doing so.

So what is the state Senate waiting for? The state's medical community, 76% of New Yorkers, and the majority of voters from every significant political party support allowing medical marijuana. The Assembly already passed compassionate legislation in June, and the governor indicated his support for the issue.

Please take a moment to write your state senator to ask him or her to ensure that patients finally get the relief that they deserve. You can choose from one of our pre-written letters or draft your own. Please let your senator know that New York's seriously ill patients shouldn't have to risk arrest any longer: The Senate should enact medical marijuana legislation during a special session.

The state Senate has come back to session two times since it adjourned in late June. But both times it failed to take up legislation to stop the arrest of sick and dying medical marijuana patients. Now it's clear that, in addition to being the humane thing to do, supporting medical marijuana is popular even among the state's most conservative voters.

To read a news story on the poll's release, click here. And for the full results of the poll, as well as results of six polls commissioned in individual senators' districts, click here. Each of the district polls also found strong support for medical marijuana, with support for the Assembly bill ranging from 61% to 76%.