As the New Hampshire House and Senate prepare to consider several cannabis bills, the Therapeutic Cannabis Medical Oversight Board (TCMOB) met last Wednesday evening to discuss potential impacts. The TCMOB, which is comprised primarily of medical professionals, voted to recommend either for or against five bills that will soon be considered by the state legislature.
TCMOB Opposes Three Bad Senate Bills
We recently informed you about upcoming hearings on three bills that would negatively impact patients: SB 418, SB 419, and SB 426. Fortunately, the TCMOB voted to oppose all three bills. Dr. Jerry Knirk, co-chair of the TCMOB, indicated that he plans to testify in opposition to these bills in the Senate Judiciary Committee this Thursday.
It’s very encouraging to see that the medical professionals who provide oversight for our program are standing up for patients and advocating for sensible policies. We hope the Senate will agree with the TCMOB and kill these bills so we can turn our attention to bills that would move New Hampshire in a positive direction.
TCMOB Endorses Favorable House Bills
In other encouraging news, several House bills have been introduced that would expand or otherwise improve the Therapeutic Cannabis Program (TCP). Several of these bills have been scheduled for public hearings on Thursday January 18 in the House Committee on Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs. These hearings will take place in Room 210-211 of the Legislative Office Building (33 N. State Street, Concord).
The TCMOB discussed several of these bills and voted to support two that would make it easier for patients to qualify for the TCP: HB 1278 and HB 1349. The TCMOB also discussed its continued support for legalizing home cultivation for patients and caregivers, although it determined that a new vote was not necessary to support this year’s home grow bill (HB 1231). Another bill (HB 1350, which would increase the possession and purchase limits) was endorsed by the TCMOB at its previous meeting.
Here is the committee’s schedule for Thursday, January 18:
- 9:30 a.m. HB 1278 (Thomas) – allowing therapeutic cannabis certifications for any medical condition or symptom if the provider believes the potential benefits outweigh the risks for the patient.
- 10:00 a.m. HB 1240 (Howard) – adding eating disorders as qualifying conditions for therapeutic cannabis.
- 10:30 a.m. HB 1349 (Howard) – adding generalized anxiety disorder as a qualifying condition for therapeutic cannabis.
- 1:00 p.m. HB 1350 (Howard) – increasing the possession and 10-day purchase limit for patients and caregivers from 2 ounces to 4 ounces (matching the possession limit in the adult-use legalization bill).
- 1:30 p.m. HB 1581 (Vail) – allowing ATCs to operate a second cultivation location, which may be a greenhouse (currently, ATCs may only grow indoors).
- 2:00 p.m. HB 1231 (Thomas) – permitting qualifying patients and designated caregivers to cultivate cannabis for therapeutic use.
How Can You Help?
It’s very important that legislators hear from patients who would be affected by these bills. Here are four ways you can make an impact:
(1) Sign in to indicate your position to the committee.
It’s easy to sign in and register your position on a bill from home. Just visit the House’s remote sign-in page and follow these simple steps for each bill you care about. You can do this now or anytime before the public hearings on Thursday, January 18.
(2) Testify at the hearing or submit comments remotely.
If you’d like to testify in person, you can sign up in the committee room before the hearings. Due to time constraints, it’s best to limit testimony to no more than two or three minutes per person.
If you’d like to submit written testimony or simply share your comments with the committee, you can do so via the House’s remote sign-in page.
(3) Call or email your state representative(s).
If you don’t already know your state representative(s), you can look them up and find their contact information here. Sending a personal email takes more time than signing in via the web portal, but it is well worth doing. If legislators don’t hear from patients who benefit from therapeutic cannabis, they may never understand why the Therapeutic Cannabis Program is so valuable and important.
You can also call your representative(s) and share your thoughts on these bills. Please note that, unlike state senators, N.H. representatives do not have staff who answer phone calls for them. If you call a state representative, the number listed will likely be their home or cell number.
IMPORTANT: If you decide to testify at the public hearing or communicate with elected officials, please be courteous and respectful. Elected officials tend to respond unfavorably if advocates seem disrespectful.
(4) Share details with your friends!
Do your friends care about sensible and compassionate cannabis policies? If so, please share the link to our blog and encourage them to take action!
