On August 10, Governor Chris Sununu, R, signed 30 bills into law. One bill, HB 605, expanded the list of qualifying conditions for medical cannabis in New Hampshire. It also allowed out-of-state medical cannabis patients to purchase from state owned dispensaries. However, there are limitations to each aspect of the bill. 

Qualifying Condition

Under HB 605, opioid use disorder now qualifies for medical cannabis. However, for a patient to qualify for medical cannabis with this new qualifying disorder, several steps must be taken first. 

Firstly, patients must have a recommendation from a board certified addiction medicine or an addiction psychiatrist. The patient must also be actively treated for opioid use disorder and present with withdrawal symptoms and cravings. 

Out-of-State Patients

Qualifying patients for medical cannabis in their state of residence can now access New Hampshire dispensaries. Under HB 605, patients who qualify in their area for medical cannabis and can show proof of a valid recommendation, then they can purchase medical cannabis. 

Any future rules are up to the Department of Health and Human Services for dispensary verification and eligibility. Out-of-state patients can only purchase medical cannabis no more than three times in a 12 month period, which limits patients from taking advantage of a state’s system. However, patients who can provide a statement from their health provider saying they have a condition qualify them for medical cannabis under New Hampshire law can purchase medical cannabis more than three times in a 12 month period. 

Response

The Director of public and government relations for Prime Alternative Treatment Centers of New Hampshire is Matt Simon. Recently, he spoke about the governor signing HB 605 and said it “is an important step forward for the therapeutic cannabis program in two ways.”

“First, patients who visit New Hampshire to spend time with family or to enjoy the lakes and mountains should not have to worry about how they will obtain safe, legal access to cannabis,” he said. “Second, the inclusion of opioid use disorder provides addiction specialists with an important tool that can help patients mitigate their withdrawal symptoms and stay off opioids. We are grateful to legislators and Gov. Sununu for making the therapeutic cannabis program more accessible to patients.”

Previously, New Hampshire legalized medical cannabis in 2013. There is potential New Hampshire lawmakers may move forward with recreational cannabis legalization. Recently, a poll showed 78 percent of residents approve of recreational cannabis legalization. Only time will tell. 

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