New Hampshire The third time was the charm for medical cannabis access in the Granite State. Well, sort of. Former Democratic Gov. John Lynch had twice vetoed legislation legalizing physician-authorized cannabis. However, newly elected Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan had pledged to part ways with the former Governor and allow for New Hampshire patients to finally receive long-awaited legal protections. And she lived up to her pledge – sort of. In July, Gov. Hassan signed legislation, House Bill 573, creating four state-sanctioned marijuana dispensing facilities to produce and distribute cannabis to state-qualified patients who possess a doctor’s recommendation. Unfortunately, the new law provides no immediate legal protections for patients who obtain cannabis on the black market, nor does it permit authorized patients to engage in home cultivation – as both provisions were opposed by and ultimately removed from the bill at the request of none other than Gov. Hassan. The Governor also strong-armed lawmakers into stripping language from the bill that provided for patients suffering from post-traumatic stress to have access to cannabis therapy. Nonetheless, Hassan insists that her last-minute restrictions to the measure were “compassionate” and “right” – even if they mean limiting patients’ access and legal protections under the law until at least 2015.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 06:00:33 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015