Committee hears testimony to double therapeutic cannabis possession limit to 4 ounces

Concord — Lawmakers heard extensive testimony on HB 190, a bill that would raise the legal possession limit for registered therapeutic cannabis patients from 2 ounces to 4 ounces.

Supporters told the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee the change would ease access and lower cost and travel burdens for patients who rely on cannabis for medical reasons. "This bill ... increases therapeutic cannabis purchase and possession limits from 2 to 4 ounces," Representative Heath Howard told the committee when he introduced the measure.

The bill's proponents described several rationales. Heather Marie Brown, patient representative and alternate chair of the Therapeutic Cannabis Medical Oversight Board, said the current 2-ounce limit forces some patients to make frequent trips to dispensaries and drives some toward the unregulated market. "If I was able to purchase 4 ounces of cannabis at 1 time, I could go home and I can make my butter, and I can make my oil, and I can make my tinctures, and then I am all set for a month," Brown said, adding that the larger amount reduces travel, lowers cost per dose and helps patients manage chronic pain and PTSD without feeling they are committing a crime.

Matt Simon, who identified himself as working for Granite Leaf Cannabis, an alternative treatment center, also supported the bill and described practical problems created by the current law for dispensary staff and patients. He said the therapeutic program now sells a wide variety of products beyond flower — capsules, tinctures and suppositories — and the 2-ounce flower-based limit forces staff to perform complex conversions and frequent explanations to patients about allotments.

Several lawmakers and witnesses emphasized geographic access issues. Representative Heath Howard and others said New Hampshire has a small number of dispensary locations, with heavier concentration in the southern half of the state, producing long drives for North Country patients. Howard said increasing the limit could let some patients reduce trips from monthly to every two months.

Committee members probed the evidence backing a higher limit. Sukhumala, state chairman of SAM New Hampshire, a prevention group, asked for data showing how many patients need larger amounts and suggested tying quantity to a time period (for example, a 60- or 90-day supply) or to physician prescription rather than a flat possession increase. He said many other states set month-by-month supply rules or physician-prescribed amounts rather than a flat ounce limit.

Brown and other witnesses described how patients sometimes buy larger quantities to produce oils and edibles that stretch across a month. "When I take 4 ounces of cannabis and I go to make oil with it, there technically is only a 30% return on it," Brown said, explaining that smaller purchases can be inefficient for patients who make tinctures or cooking oils at home.

Other witnesses included Joe Hannon, a former state representative and advisory-board member of the New Hampshire Cannabis Association, who urged lawmakers to reduce unnecessary travel and to consider bulk purchases as a harm-reduction and cost-saving measure for medically authorized users.

Opponents and those urging caution asked the committee for better data. Sukhumala said he had assembled comparative charts on state limits and would provide that material, and some committee members asked the therapeutic program and dispensaries for usage and sales data so lawmakers could see how many patients actually reach current limits and what products they purchase.

The committee did not take formal action at the hearing. Supporters argued the bill would improve patient access in rural areas and reduce cost and travel; critics urged collecting more evidence and considering alternatives such as longer refill intervals or physician-prescribed monthly allotments.

The bill remains under consideration in committee; supporters said they would provide data charts from out-of-state comparisons and from dispensaries to answer members’ questions.

Ending note: Witnesses suggested potential compromise amendments — for example, a larger possession limit tied to a longer refill interval — that might address both access and oversight concerns raised by committee members.