Grisanti sends letter to Cuomo asking for emergency amendments to medical marijuana law

Grisanti requests immediate action on legislation to further prevent any more tragedies

New York State Sen. Mark Grisanti, R-I-60, sent a letter Sunday along with two other state lawmakers urging Gov. Andrew Cuomo to make amendments to the medical marijuana law as quickly as possible.

The letter opens by telling the story of Orchard Park resident Anna Conte.

"Nine-year old Anna Conte died on July 17, after several days in a coma brought on by a severe epileptic seizure. Anna, who lived near Buffalo, had Dravet Syndrome - a rare and severe form of epilepsy that causes a child to have as many as a hundred seizures a day," the letter explains.

Grisanti, a co-sponsor of the legislation, was joined on the letter.by Sen. Diane Savino, who sponsored the legislation in the Senate, and Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, who sponsored the legislation in the Assembly

Grisanti and his fellow lawmakers called for emergency amendments to the law.

"New York should amend the medical marijuana law as quickly as possible, even if that means convening a special session of the Legislature. The state's leaders, and our U.S. senators and members of Congress, should lobby the federal government to make whatever policy changes are needed," the letter said. "Some emergency actions (e.g., rapid approval of some in-state producers/dispensers and issuing of identification cards to selected patients) can and should in be taken quickly under the new law, and we urge the Health Department to move as quickly as possible, with focused approvals from the Commissioner and the Superintendent of State Police." 

Grisanti currently represents the 60th Senate District, which includes parts of the City of Buffalo, the Northtowns and the Southtowns. Grisanti is chairman of the Environmental Conservation Committee and currently sits on the finance, cities, cultural affairs, tourism, parks and recreation, higher education, infrastructure and capital investment, insurance, labor and veterans, homeland security and military affairs committees in the Senate.