New Hampshire Medical Marijuana Reach Expanded

More ailments covered under new law, but implementation remains non-existent

While House Bill 476 was earlier approved by both chambers of the New Hampshire legislature, it was Governor Maggie Hassan's signature that made it a law on July 6. Once the bill takes effect on September 24, those suffering from Alzheimer's, lupus, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy will also be considered for legal access to medical Cannabis.

However, nobody is receiving any therapeutic benefits, because no one can actually get any weed. New Hampshire was the nineteenth state to legalize medical pot, but patients are currently only benefiting in terms of having something to look forward to. Unlike other states with legal medicinal pot laws, qualifying New Hampshire patients are not permitted to grow their own product and cannot purchase it across state lines - not just due to legal complications of interstate commerce, but also because no New Hampshire medical marijuana identification cards have been issued.

On June 9, the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced the licensing of only four dispensaries for operation, to be run by three production companies: Prime Alternative Treatment Centers of NH, Inc. in Geographic Area 2, Temescal Wellness, Inc. in Geographic Areas 1 and 3 and Sanctuary ATC in Geographic Area 4. The proposed providers must meet a deadline of August 27, by which applications for registration must be completed. Operations will be thoroughly inspected before any providers are registered as legal Cannabis production facilities.

The Department of Health and Human Services website will keep prospective patients informed as to the process and dates of registration. Medical identification cards are expected to be issued around six weeks before the dispensaries open for business.

In addition to the state's tedious implementation of legal medical marijuana, which was sanctioned back in June of 2013, only patients who have been diagnosed with one of a very limited list of diseases and disorders qualify for medi-weed. Chronic pancreatitis, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injuries, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and HIV/AIDS are just a few from that list.