House health panel hears mother’s account of son’s psychosis as lawmakers consider banning altered hemp products

The Health Committee of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives held a public hearing on June 17, 2025, on Proyecto de la Cámara 223 and heard testimony from a mother who said her 19‑year‑old son developed psychosis after using Delta‑8/chemically altered hemp products widely sold at gas stations and neighborhood shops.

The committee chair said the panel received memorials and lab samples and that preliminary testing by the Instituto de Ciencias Forenses found THC in several products. "En 1 de ellos se detectó que tiene el delta 9 THC... en 1 de ellos dice que se detectó marihuana y también se detectó el delta 9 THC con un 5.3 por 100," the presiding representative said, noting the federal THC limit of 0.3 percent as a point of comparison. The chair added that the measure would be amended toward prohibition rather than regulation: "como de costumbre en la comisión vamos a enmendar este proyecto. Eso de regularlo no es lo que vamos a buscar, vamos a buscar prohibirlo, ¿verdad?"

The hearing centered on the accessibility of chemically altered hemp products—sold under names…