Diane Savino

Sen. Diane Savino, D-Staten Island, speaks during a Senate health committee meeting at the Capitol in May. A bill that would legalize medical marijuana in New York has passed the Republican-led committee, one of a series of hurdles the measure will have to go through before becoming law. Savino sponsored the legislation in the Senate. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

(Mike Groll)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The New York State Legislature is poised to vote on allowing marijuana for medical use by next week, according to a key supporter of the bill.

"We will have a final product in time for the end of this legislative session," Sen. Diane Savino, D-Staten Island, said today in Albany.

Two developments in the last 24 hours signal the proposal is moving closer to making New York the 23rd state to allow the drug's use for medical treatments.

First, three-way talks between the Legislature's Senate and Assembly and Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office began Wednesday evening, Savino said.

"We would like to have a three-way agreement by Monday," Savino said. That would provide the three days necessary to age the bill before a floor vote on June 19, the last scheduled day of this legislative session.

Second, the legislation was moved mid-day today to the Senate Rules Committee. It had stalled in recent days in the Senate Finance Committee. The Finance Committee is chaired by Sen. John DeFrancisco, who does not support the proposal.

Cuomo said this morning during an interview that he supports the idea of medical marijuana in concept, but that he has questions about Savino's bill.

Savino later today said some of those questions involve physician training, regulating the sale and distribution of the drug, ensuring the quality of the drug and keeping the medical marijuana from supplying an illegal drug trade.

Savino's "Compassionate Care Act" passed the New York State Senate's Health Committee last month. In recent years, a version of the bill has passed the New York State Assembly five times (including this year). It has never been before the full Senate; Savino says she has the votes to pass the bill.

Her proposal would allow physicians to prescribe marijuana to patients with 20 specific conditions or diagnoses. The state's Health Department would ultimately approve each patient for the treatment. The drug would be grown at state-sanctioned facilities and would be taxed. People under 21 would not be able smoke marijuana as part of their treatment.

Contact Teri Weaver at tweaver@syracuse.com, 315-470-2274 or on Twitter at @TeriKWeaver.