CHAPTER 47
HB 163-FN - FINAL VERSION
8Apr2021... 0238h
2021 SESSION
21-0012
04/05
HOUSE BILL 163-FN
AN ACT relative to cannabis use during pregnancy.
SPONSORS: Rep. Marsh, Carr. 8; Rep. Abrami, Rock. 19; Rep. Rung, Hills. 21; Rep. Crawford, Carr. 4; Rep. Nelson, Carr. 5; Rep. Knirk, Carr. 3; Rep. Deshaies, Carr. 6
COMMITTEE: Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires alternative treatment centers to prepare information regarding the risk of cannabis use during pregnancy. The bill also requires the commissioner of the department of health and human services to prepare a brochure relative to the risk of cannabis use during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
8Apr2021... 0238h 21-0012
04/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT relative to cannabis use during pregnancy.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
47:1 Statement of Intent.
The general court recognizes that the United States Surgeon General has issued a major health advisory on the risks of marijuana use in adolescence and during pregnancy. The Surgeon General’s warning adheres to the generally accepted medical and psychiatric definition of an adolescent as ranging in age from 12-25 years old. The advisory reads in part:
“I, Surgeon General VADM Jerome Adams, am emphasizing the importance of protecting our Nation from the health risks of marijuana use in adolescence and during pregnancy. Recent increases in access to marijuana and in its potency, along with misperceptions of safety of marijuana endanger our most precious resource, our nation’s youth.”
“No amount of marijuana use during pregnancy or adolescence is known to be safe. Until and unless more is known about the long-term impact, the safest choice for pregnant women and adolescents is not to use marijuana.”
“The human brain continues to develop from before birth into the mid-20s and is vulnerable to the effects of addictive substances.”
“Pregnant women and youth--and those who love them--need the facts and resources to support healthy decisions. It is critical to educate women and youth, as well as family members, school officials, state and local leaders, and health professionals, about the risks of marijuana, particularly as more states contemplate legalization.”
“Marijuana available in dispensaries in some states has average concentrations of THC between 17.7% and 23.2%. Concentrated products, commonly known as dabs or waxes, are far more widely available to recreational users today and may contain between 23.7% and 75.9% THC.”
“The risks of physical dependence, addiction, and other negative consequences increase with exposure to high concentrations of THC and the younger the age of initiation. Higher doses of THC are more likely to produce anxiety, agitation, paranoia, and psychosis.”
“Marijuana’s increasingly widespread availability in multiple and highly potent forms, coupled with a false and dangerous perception of safety among youth, merits a nationwide call to action.”
Therefore the general court hereby addresses these concerns.
47:2 New Paragraph; Use of Cannabis for Therapeutic Purposes; Definitions. Amend RSA 126-X:1 by inserting after paragraph XV the following new paragraph:
XV-a. “Use in adolescence” means the therapeutic use of cannabis by any person whose age is within the generally accepted medical and psychiatric definition of an adolescent as ranging in age from 12-25 years old, as well as by individuals younger in age.
47:3 New Paragraph; Use of Cannabis for Therapeutic Purposes; Departmental Rules. Amend RSA 126-X:6 by inserting after paragraph V the following new paragraph:
VI. The department shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, to document that counseling has been provided by the certifying provider to all women of child-bearing age and adolescents 25 years of age or less, and the parent or guardian of a patient less than age 18, about the risks of cannabis use in adolescence, during pregnancy, and while breastfeeding, prior to issuing or reissuing a therapeutic cannabis card to such individuals.
47:4 New Subparagraphs; Use of Cannabis for Therapeutic Purposes; Alternative Treatment Centers; Requirements. Amend RSA 126-X:8, XVI(c) by inserting after subparagraph (6) the following new subparagraphs:
(7) Information about the risks of cannabis use during pregnancy and while breastfeeding, as outlined by the therapeutic cannabis medical oversight board. Such information shall include the posting of an informational poster regarding the risks of cannabis use during pregnancy and while breastfeeding in a conspicuous location at the alternative treatment center’s dispensary location.
(8) Information regarding safe storage and disposal of cannabis and paraphernalia to prevent accidental poisonings, including the contact information for the Northern New England Poison Control Center.
(9) Information about the risks of cannabis use in adolescence as outlined by the therapeutic cannabis medical oversight board. Such information shall include the posting of an informational poster on the risks of cannabis use in adolescence in a conspicuous location at the alternative treatment center’s dispensary location.
47:5 New Paragraph; Use of Cannabis for Therapeutic Purposes; Duties. Amend RSA 132:2 by inserting after paragraph XI the following new paragraph:
XII. Prepare, in conjunction with the bureau of alcohol and drug services and the division of public health services, a brochure and a poster which provides information relative to the risks of cannabis use during pregnancy, adolescence, and while breastfeeding, which shall be posted and available to the public in all therapeutic cannabis dispensary locations pursuant to RSA 126-X:8.
47:6 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Approved: May 25, 2021
Effective Date: July 24, 2021