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STATE HOUSE Updated medical pot law takes effect next month Law will add chronic pain, PTSD to qualifying conditions

Portsmouth Herald - 7/9/2017

CONCORD - Next month, the qualifying medical conditions the state allows for medical cannabis use will expand to include chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder. The law also inserts language to inform users of the potential loss of federal rights.

Gov. Chris Sununu signed House Bill 160 on June 28 that expanded the medical conditions that give more leeway for doctors to recommend the use of medical cannabis.

While New Hampshire's medical marijuana law went into effect on paper in 2013, it wasn't until spring of 2016 when patients with qualifying medical conditions could legally obtain marijuana through the newly opened medical cannabis dispensaries. Patients who have a qualifying condition and want to use marijuana legally in the state apply and receive a registry identification card from the Department of Health and Human Services and choose one of the four medical cannabis dispensaries in the state to make their purchases. The closest one in the Seacoast region is Temescal Wellness in Dover.

Last year, an attempt to add PTSD was killed by the House's Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee with a unanimous 16-0 vote. This year, the bill passed committee on a divided 9-8 vote.

Rep. Jess Edwards (R-Auburn) wrote in the committee majority report that "New Hampshire has the fourth largest veteran per capita population in the Nation" and that PTSD "in this population is a significant health concern. PTSD can often go untreated while many victims choose to self-isolate and self-medicate. The potential to use medical cannabis may bring more patients into a clinical setting."

William Marsh (R-Wolfeboro) argued in the minority report that as long as the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency classifies cannabis as a Schedule I drug, which means the feds believe it has no accepted medical use in the country, "we remain uncomfortable with further expanding this program. Further, existing legislation set up a committee to evaluate potential additions to this program and that committee has not yet been given opportunity to do its job."

The bill passed the House on a 302-46 roll call vote; all but two of the dissenters were Republicans. In the Senate, the bill was amended to include "moderate or severe chronic pain" and passed on a voice vote. The House concurred on a voice vote and the bill was then signed by the governor.

The bill's sponsor, Eric Schleien (R-Hudson), said in a written message that the addition of moderate to severe chronic pain to the law "is an insanely big step forward in the right direction as it will allow many patients to use cannabis as an alternative to opioids.

"There's been a lot of research on this which shows that doctors prescribe fewer opioids in states where medical cannabis is an option for pain, and those states have lower fatal overdose rates," he said.

The science may not be that clear-cut, but there are studies that suggest there is a drop in opioid overdoses in states where medical cannabis is legal.

Another bill that Schleien sponsored that would have added opioid addiction to qualifying conditions was unanimously rejected by the Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee and killed by the House by a voice vote.

HB 160 also adds language that states "that by using cannabis the qualifying patient may be subject to the denial of rights and privileges by federal agencies including, but not limited to, the loss of rights related to employment such as driving a commercial vehicle, the inability to pass a security clearance, and the right to own, possess, or purchase a firearm and/or ammunition. The statement shall be updated based on any relevant changes in federal law."

The U.S. Dept. of Justice, which oversees the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, will not allow the purchase of firearms by a person who uses marijuana, even in states where it is legal for a person to do so. The ATF's firearms transaction record includes the question: "Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?" In October 2016, the record was updated to include: "Warning: The use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under Federal law regardless of whether it has been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreational purposes in the state where you reside."

The state's updated medical cannabis law goes into effect on Aug. 15.