NEW YORK (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has signed legislation to add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of ailments that can legally be treated with medical marijuana.
The PTSD bill was part of a package of legislation that Cuomo signed on Saturday to mark Veterans Day.
“Our veterans risked their lives in order to defend the ideals and principles that this nation was founded upon, and it is our duty to do everything we can to support them when they return home,” Cuomo said.
The governor said 19,000 New Yorkers with PTSD could be helped by medical marijuana. He said the potential beneficiaries include veterans as well as police officers and survivors of domestic violence, crime and accidents.
New York’s medical marijuana law allows patients with illnesses that include cancer, AIDS and Parkinson’s disease to consume non-smokable forms of the drug.
