New York State has one of the most restrictive medical marijuana programs in the country, but it may be starting to loosen up. A bi-partisan bill that would add post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a qualifying condition passed the Senate Health Committee and now waits on Senate approval.

“I am grateful to the Senate Health Committee for advancing this compassionate bill, and on behalf of countless veterans who could benefit, I urge the full Senate to promptly approve the bill. Veterans with PTSD should not have to choose between FDA-approved medications that carry a black box suicide warning and off-label drugs with no clinical efficacy and horrible side effects,” said Michael Krawitz, executive director of Veterans for Medical Cannabis Access. “There is another way: medical marijuana has helped veterans have a restful night’s sleep instead of night terrors, and thus experience a better quality of life.”

The program is easing up on the approved conditions and also recently added chronic pain to the list. There have been other proposals to expand the program, they struggle to get beyond the committee. For example, Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal introduced Bill 582 to add Dysmenorrhea or menstrual pain to the list of approved conditions. [Read more at Forbes]