#MyHolidayWish for Emergency Access

Implementing an emergency access program in New York will allow critically ill patients with afflictions that medical marijuana has a successful history of treating access to the medicine that could save their life.

There are many New Yorkers with conditions that medical medical marijuana could help today. Among those in urgent need are children with treatment resistant epilepsy. Watch Tommy’s story below:

Take Action

The #MyHolidayWish campaign needs your help. We are using the holiday season to raise awareness about the lack of emergency access to New York leaders. Help amplify our campaign message by:

• Visiting the CCNY Twitter and Facebook page: Promote CCNY’s message to your network by “sharing” posts and retweeting tweets.

• A #MyHolidayWish Tweet: Craft your own tweets using the #MyHolidayWish hashtag. Include New York leaders in your tweets and ask them to grant emergency access to medical marijuana today. The New York leaders that can make our wish a reality are: @NYGovCuomo - @JeffKleinNY - @SenatorSkelos

• A #MyHolidayWish Facebook Post: Develop original Facebook posts using the #MyHolidayWish hashtag. Explain your personal experience and why emergency access to medical marijuana is important to you.

• Share Your Story: Throughout the campaign, we have heard from several families who are suffering due to a lack of access to medical marijuana. Share your story with [email protected].

• Submit Your Email Below: Show your support for the #MyHolidayWish campaign goals by submitting your email address below.

The Need for Emergency Access

Thousands of critically and terminally ill patients in New York are at risk of losing their lives before New York’s medical marijuana program becomes fully operational (anticipated January 2016). Among those are more than 700 New York children suffering from treatment-resistant epilepsy, a condition that can cause hundreds of seizures per day. The relentless seizures can result in countless physical injuries, a deteriorated mental state and even death.

Introducing medical marijuana to patients with epilepsy, in many cases, results in fewer seizures, a healthier appetite and a more acute mental state.

Despite the proven efficacy of medical marijuana, New York leaders are stalling to grant emergency access to our society’s most vulnerable citizens. CCNY is asking New York leaders to implement an emergency access to medical marijuana in on one of three ways:

1. Fast-track one or more producers in New York that can rapidly produce medical marijuana for this particular subset of patients;
2. Grant legal protections to patients who are critically ill and purchase marijuana from other jurisdictions; or
3. Instruct law enforcement not to arrest critically ill patients that import medical marijuana from other jurisdictions where it is legal.

Submit your Email Below

To support the #MyHolidayWish Campaign submit your name and email below. CCNY will send updates at various stages of the campaign to keep our advocates up to date.