New Hampshire HB 1117: relative to the right of licensed health care providers to freely communicate with patients, colleagues, and the public about medical information, emerging therapies, and treatment options.

Bill Text

HB 1117-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE

11Mar2026... 1026h

2026 SESSION

 26-2567

 05/09

HOUSE BILL 1117-FN

AN ACT relative to the right of licensed health care providers to freely communicate with patients, colleagues, and the public about medical information, emerging therapies, and treatment options.

SPONSORS: Rep. McGrath, Rock. 40; Rep. DeRoy, Straf. 3; Rep. DeVito, Rock. 8; Rep. Litchfield, Rock. 32; Rep. Morton, Hills. 39; Rep. Perez, Rock. 16; Rep. Sabourin dit Choiniere, Rock. 30; Rep. Terry, Belk. 7; Rep. Wherry, Hills. 13; Rep. Bernardy, Rock. 36

COMMITTEE: Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs

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ANALYSIS

 This bill provides that a health care provider shall not be subject to disciplinary action, professional sanction, or civil or criminal liability for communicating with a patient, another provider, or the public about emerging medical research, experimental treatments, innovative therapies, or off-label uses of medications, provided the communication is made in good faith and not knowingly false or misleading.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

 Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

 Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

11Mar2026... 1026h 26-2567

 05/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six

AN ACT relative to the right of licensed health care providers to freely communicate with patients, colleagues, and the public about medical information, emerging therapies, and treatment options.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 1 Short Title. This act shall be known as the "Health Care Provider Free Speech and Innovation Act".

 2 Findings and Purpose.

 I. The New Hampshire general court finds the following:

 (a) According to the National Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine), it can take an average of 17 years for a new medical discovery or best practice to be incorporated into the standard clinical practice of the average physician or surgeon.

 (b) This delay impedes the timely adoption of potentially life-saving or life-improving innovations in medicine and health care.

 (c) Medical progress often emerges first through individual research, clinical innovation, and professional dialogue before reaching mainstream consensus.

 (d) Health care providers are uniquely qualified to assess, communicate, and make clinical decisions in consultation with their patients based on the latest research, clinical data, and individual patient needs.

 (e) The open exchange of ideas and information is a fundamental right protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and part I article 22 of the New Hampshire constitution. 

 II. The purpose of this act is to:

 (a) Protect the rights of licensed health care providers to freely communicate with patients, colleagues, and the public about medical information, emerging therapies, and treatment options.

 (b) Enable health care providers to explore and recommend innovative or off-label treatments in good faith and consistent with professional standards, without fear of punitive action, censorship, or disciplinary measures based solely on divergence from prevailing or consensus medical opinion.

 3 New Chapter; Protection of Free Speech in Health Care Settings. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 332-N the following new chapter:

CHAPTER 332-O

PROTECTION OF FREE SPEECH IN HEALTH CARE SETTINGS

 332-O:1 Definitions.

 In this chapter:

 I. "Health care provider" means a person licensed, certified, or otherwise authorized to provide medical or health care services, including but not limited to physicians, surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician associates, and other allied health professionals.

 II. "Innovative therapy" means any medical treatment, approach, or product, including off-label uses, that is supported by credible scientific evidence but has not yet become part of widely recognized standard care.

 III. "Disciplinary action" includes suspension, revocation, investigation, censure, fines, or any adverse action by licensing boards, employers, insurers, or governmental agencies.

 IV. "Good faith" means an honest belief, without malice or intent to mislead, that the information or recommendation is accurate, based on available evidence, and made with the patient’s best interests in mind.

 332-O:2 Protection of Medical Free Speech.

 I. A licensed health care provider shall not be subject to disciplinary action, professional sanction, or civil or criminal liability for:

 (a) Communicating with a patient, another health care provider, or the public about emerging medical resear