§ 3361 — Certification of patients

* § 3361. Certification of patients. 1. A patient certification may\nonly be issued if: (a) a practitioner has been registered with the\ndepartment to issue a certification as determined by the commissioner;\n(b) the patient has a serious condition, which shall be specified in the\npatient's health care record; (c) the practitioner by training or\nexperience is qualified to treat the serious condition; (d) the patient\nis under the practitioner's continuing care for the serious condition;\nand (e) in the practitioner's professional opinion and review of past\ntreatments, the patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative\nbenefit from the primary or adjunctive treatment with medical use of\nmarihuana for the serious condition.\n 2. The certification shall include (a) the name, date of birth and\naddress of the patient; (b) a statement that the patient has a serious\ncondition and the patient is under the practitioner's care for the\nserious condition; (c) a statement attesting that all requirements of\nsubdivision one of this section have been satisfied; (d) the date; and\n(e) the name, address, federal registration number, telephone number,\nand the handwritten signature of the certifying practitioner. The\ncommissioner may require by regulation that the certification shall be\non a form provided by the department. The practitioner may state in the\ncertification that, in the practitioner's professional opinion, the\npatient would benefit from medical marihuana only until a specified\ndate. The practitioner may state in the certification that, in the\npractitioner's professional opinion, the patient is terminally ill and\nthat the certification shall not expire until the patient dies.\n 3. In making a certification, the practitioner shall consider the form\nof medical marihuana the patient should consume, including the method of\nconsumption and any particular strain, variety, and quantity or\npercentage of marihuana or particular active ingredient, and appropriate\ndosage. The practitioner shall state in the certification any\nrecommendation or limitation the practitioner makes, in his or her\nprofessional opinion, concerning the appropriate form or forms of\nmedical marihuana and dosage.\n 4. Every practitioner shall consult the prescription monitoring drug\nprogram registry prior to making or issuing a certification, for the\npurpose of reviewing a patient's controlled substance history. For\npurposes of this section, a practitioner may authorize a designee to\nconsult the prescription monitoring program registry on his or her\nbehalf, provided that such designation is in accordance with section\nthirty-three hundred forty-three-a of this article.\n 5. The practitioner shall give the certification to the certified\npatient, and place a copy in the patient's health care record.\n 6. No practitioner shall issue a certification under this section for\nhimself or herself.\n 7. A registry identification card based on a certification shall\nexpire one year after the date the certification is signed by the\npractitioner.\n 8. (a) If the practitioner states in the certification that, in the\npractitioner's professional opinion, the patient would benefit from\nmedical marihuana only until a specified earlier date, then the registry\nidentification card shall expire on that date;\n (b) If the practitioner states in the certification that in the\npractitioner's professional opinion the patient is terminally ill and\nthat the certification shall not expire until the patient dies, then the\nregistry identification card shall state that the patient is terminally\nill and that the registration card shall not expire until the patient\ndies;\n (c) If the practitioner re-issues the certification to terminate the\ncertification on an earlier date, then the registry identification card\nshall expire on that date and shall be promptly returned by the\ncertified patient to the department;\n (d) If the certification so provides, the registry identification card\nshall state any recommendation or limitation by the practitioner as to\nthe form or forms of medical marihuana or dosage for the certified\npatient; and\n (e) The commissioner shall make regulations to implement this\nsubdivision.\n 9.(a) A certification may be a special certification if, in addition\nto the other requirements for a certification, the practitioner\ncertifies in the certification that the patient's serious condition is\nprogressive and degenerative or that delay in the patient's certified\nmedical use of marihuana poses a serious risk to the patient's life or\nhealth.\n (b) The department shall create the form to be used for a special\ncertification and shall make that form available to be downloaded from\nthe department's website.\n * NB Repealed July 5, 2028 and Repealed 6 months after the full\ncannabis control board created by Article 2 of the cannabis law has been\nappointed\n