On January 7, 2016, New York launched the Medical Marijuana Program established under the State’s Compassionate Care Act (“Program”). The Program
is intended to deliver approved forms of marijuana to seriously ill individuals “in desperate need of treatment.” Medicinal use of marijuana in New York requires a registered physician’s certification and State-issued registry identification card.
The Program establishes that State-certified medicinal pot users “shall be deemed” disabled within the meaning of the State’s Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”). Under the NYSHRL, employers with four or more employees are prohibited from discriminating against individuals in compensation or in the terms and conditions of employment based on their status as individuals with disabilities. Employers are also obligated to accommodate disabled individuals.
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