First of all...

THANK YOU

The 2016 session has been a successful one for progressive Substance Use Disorder policy and we know that would not have been possible without your support. This email is not only a legislative wrap up, it's also a huge thank you to all of our advocates and supporters. Even though the session is over, our work is not. Make sure to sign up for an upcoming advocacy or Recovery Coach Academy training and as always, feel free to reach out to us directly with any ideas on how to make our work more inclusive, efficient and effective.

Now for the big picture:

Thanks to you, 93% of the bills we took action on had successful outcomes that were in line with our legislative positions!

Percentage of alcohol and other drug related bills successfully

passed, or defeated, in line with New Futures positions in Q2 of 2016.

The specifics:

We've taken our three major areas of policy focus and summarized the progress we've made this session on each below. We've also made sure to include the bill descriptions and numbers as hyperlinks that will lead you to more in-depth information on each specific bill.

There was a huge push in the House and Senate over the past session to increase access to critical health and treatment services for those suffering from Substance Use Disorders. One of the greatest victories from this session was the re-authorization of Medicaid expansion, which ensured that over 50,000 Granite Staters would continue to have access to preventative and primary care, as well as Substance Use Disorder treatment.

HB 1406 - Commission on Medicaid benefits when a person enters certain state institutions or correctional facilities

SB 533 - Governor's Commission on SUD appropriation

HB 1696 - Re-authorization of the NHHPP (Medicaid Expansion)

SB 532 - Prior authorization for substance use disorder treatment

SB 464 - Establishing drug courts

SB 502 - Parity for Substance Use Disorders

While our state struggles with our current opioid and heroin epidemic, we cannot forget that alcohol is a deadly substance that should also be monitored closely. There were two bills introduced this session that we followed closely. We were successful in killing legislation that would have doubled the amount of alcohol in specialty beer, but we were disappointed that legislation to prohibit the possession of powdered alcohol did not go through.

HB 1152 - Doubling alcohol percentage

SB 501 - Powdered and crystalline alcohol

Drug policy in New Hampshire has always been a priority for New Futures. This session we took action on numerous bills that dealt with the decriminalization or legalization of marijuana and addressing the opioid epidemic.

HB 1631 - Marijuana decriminalization

HB 1610 - Marijuana legalization

HB 1675 - Marijuana legalization

HB 1694 - Marijuana legalization

HB 1648 - Pharmacist sales under Controlled Drug Act

HB 1423 - Rulemaking for prescribing controlled drugs

Looking forward:

Together we've accomplished so much,

but our work is not over yet.

Session may be out for summer, but the staff here at New Futures will be continuing to advocate for successful and progressive Substance Use Disorder policies. Keep an eye out for our 2017 legislative agenda. Please keep advocating this summer on behalf of those affected by Substance Use Disorders. Our entire staff hopes that you and yours have a wonderful and safe summer.

                     Access to treatment contact:             Alcohol and drug policy contact:

                     Michele Merritt                                     Kate Frey

                     Policy Director                                     Deputy Director

                     New Futures, inc.                                 New Futures, inc.

                     (603) 225-9540 Ext. 109                       (603) 225-9540 Ext. 110

                     MMerritt@new-futures.org                   KFrey@new-futures.org