HB1318

NH’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports for Behavioral Health and Wellness (MTSS-B) is a framework that helps provide behavioral health support to our students. The three tiers of this system work together to ensure that all kids in our public schools are given positive behavioral expectations. Some children can benefit from Tier 2, which simply means they will receive coping support and skill building. This can help children who are struggling in school. The kids with the highest needs have access to individualized behavioral health services through local community health care partners. There will always be some children who need more supports to be successful, and this is a thoughtful and impactful way of helping those children. MTSS-B can reduce exclusionary practices like suspension and expulsion. It can improve instructional time by decreasing disruptive behaviors in the classroom, and it can increase academic success. This initiative had bipartisan support and was signed into law by a republican governor just a few short years ago. I am not sure why this committee is considering ending the Multi-Tiered System of Supports before we see the impact it could have on our students. Please give this framework a chance to make a difference. Please vote ITL on this bill.

None of these changes included in this bill reduce the real-world obligations schools must meet. Standards still apply. Students still need services. Transportation, staffing, and instructional needs do not disappear. When the legal definition of adequacy is narrowed or blurred while obligations remain, the pressure does not go away. It shifts, most often onto local property taxpayers, increasing inequities between communities with very different tax bases.

The New Hampshire Medical Society urges 'Ought to Pass' on HB 1318. We support the Committee’s efforts to study non-pharmacological treatment options for patients living with chronic pain. There is a significant need to advance a understanding and support for a multimodal approach to pain management—one that expands access to evidence-based therapies, ensures adequate insurance coverage, and reduces reliance on opioids whenever possible.

Please renew the committee to study non-pharmacological treatment options for people suffering from chronic pain. My brother suffers greatly from pain, so I know how important this issue is. Support this bill.

I support the intent of HB1318 to explore non-pharmacological pain treatment options, provided the committee’s work complements—not replaces—evidence-based medical care, including medication-assisted treatment. Chronic-pain patients deserve expanded options, not stigma or reduced access. I encourage the committee to ensure the study remains grounded in clinical evidence and focused on improving real access to care.

I am in full support of this bill for renewing the committee to study non-pharmacological treatment options for patients with chronic pain.

Libraries should be controlled by the people and not by the government--to preserve critical thinking and avoid authoritarianism.

L

This is for the sake of all NH voters.

Children who identify as a gender other than those assigned at birth are extremely vulnerable and need supportive adults around them to help them navigate the life-changing decisions they will make. This bill would remove protections from young people who are being prevented from accessing gender-affirming care or being raised in a gender-affirming way by one or more parent or guardian despite what we know to be true about the positive and life-saving benefits of being raised in an affirming environment.

Please leave these poor children alone!