Committee Summary for Senate Health and Human Services (02/18/2026)

Bill/Time	Type	Title	Sponsor
SB666 00:00:00.000 - 8:04:06 AM	Public Hearing	relative to consumer protection, transparency, and oversight of certain health care transactions and establishing a study committee to analyze health insurance providers, their practices, policies, premiums, management, and the impact to consumers.	Altschiller, Debra(D)[CT]2025
SB664 00:40:25.119 - 8:44:31 AM	Public Hearing	limiting hospital executive compensation in communities designated as distressed place-based economies under certain circumstances.	Rochefort, David(R)[B-]2025
SB670 0782 02:04:27.760 - 10:08:33 AM	Public Hearing	establishing a developmental services oversight commission; relative to membership and duties of the incapacitated and vulnerable adult fatality review committee; relative to reporting requirements regarding the death of a child in residential care; and relative to the registry of founded reports of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults.	Rochefort, David(R)[B-]2025
SB665 02:44:36.960 - 10:48:42 AM	Public Hearing	requiring pharmacies to charge consumers the lowest available price for prescription drugs.	Ricciardi, Denise(R)[B]2025
Unclear 02:53:07.040 - 10:57:13 AM	Executive Session	Unclear

SB666: Senator (Sponsor) Support00:00:00.000 - 8:04:06 AM; The speaker, a Senator sponsoring SB 666, delivers a passionate testimony highlighting the dangers of private equity involvement in healthcare. They outline how private equity firms acquire healthcare entities, impose high management fees, demand short-term profits, reduce staffing, sell assets, and ultimately abandon facilities after extracting value, leading to bankruptcies and closures. Examples include national cases like Steward Healthcare in Massachusetts and historical involvement with HCA in New Hampshire, which resulted in debt burdens, quality of care issues, and lawsuits. The speaker notes closures of maternity wards in NH and potential risks to rural areas like the North Country. They explain that SB 666 requires advance notice for acquisitions, transparency on fees and debts, Attorney General review for impacts on competition, access, and quality, and protections for clinical judgment. Emphasizing proactive measures adopted in other states, the speaker urges support to prevent Wall Street exploitation of healthcare, framing it as essential for patient safety and community access.
SB666: Alexandra Snowski, NH Attorney General's Office Support00:20:22.640 - 8:24:28 AM; Alexandra Snowski, Senior Assistant Attorney General in the Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau, testifies in support of SB 666 with points for consideration. She notes the lack of required notification for non-hospital healthcare transactions, such as physician practices, which limits oversight. The bill would provide insight into these deals, allowing review for competition issues. Concerns include the 30-day review timeline being insufficient for assessing impacts on competition, cost, access, quality, and stability; ambiguity on post-30-day actions; and the requirement for an annual public report, which could compromise confidential investigations under existing statutes like RSA 358-A and RSA 356. She mentions the fiscal note's need for additional staff, including an in-house economist, as current processes rely on external consultants charged to parties. Snowski is open to working on amendments to address these issues.
SB666: Ben Bradley, New Hampshire Hospital Association Oppose00:36:03.280 - 8:40:09 AM; Ben Bradley, representing the New Hampshire Hospital Association, opposes SB 666 as introduced. He focuses on Section 3, which adds new regulations under Title 31 for healthcare transactions involving private equity, running parallel to existing reviews under RSA 7:19-B for charitable trusts. This would increase costs and delays without targeting private equity specifically, as it captures all such transactions. While acknowledging concerns like the Steward case in Massachusetts, he supports current DOJ and charitable trust unit reviews but opposes the added regulatory burden. The Association is willing to work with the sponsor but believes the late introduction and issues make it unsuitable to move forward.
SB664: David Roer, Senator District 1 Support00:40:25.119 - 8:44:31 AM; Senator Roer, representing the North Country, introduces SB 664FN, emphasizing the scarcity of Medicaid dollars and their allocation to hospitals. He highlights high executive compensation in critical access hospitals, contrasting it with Coos County's distressed economy where the hospital CEO earns $700,000 annually despite layoffs and recruitment challenges, such as no doctors at Colebrook Hospital and $200,000 sign-on bonuses. He argues the bill imposes an 18-month freeze on executive bonuses and salary increases if a workforce reduction affects more than 10 employees in a department within six months, specifically for hospitals in distressed areas like Coos County. This ensures taxpayer money isn't used for executive bonuses during layoffs, adding accountability without prohibiting reductions or clawbacks.
SB664: Lori Corson, Representative Coos County District 7 Support00:56:20.880 - 9:00:26 AM; Representative Corson supports SB 664FN to ensure fairness and accountability in hospital executive pay in Coos County, which includes Berlin, Jefferson, Whitefield, Coos County, and Twin Mountain. She notes that many constituents have been laid off from long-held positions due to outsourcing, some out-of-state or country, while executives received bonuses. The bill addresses this disparity and brings accountability to protect hurting communities.
SB664: Steve O'Neill, President New Hampshire Hospital Association Oppose00:58:17.760 - 9:02:23 AM; Steve O'Neill opposes SB 664FN, representing 26 community and specialty hospitals. He describes the challenging hospital environment with rising costs (labor up 36% since 2019, expenses up 44%), low margins (1.6% statewide, seven hospitals in the red), and rural challenges like low volumes and underfunded Medicare/Medicaid. The bill penalizes executives for necessary workforce decisions, such as outsourcing cafeteria services that retain local jobs, or adopting innovations from the $24 million Rural Health Transformation Program. It removes local board control over compensation, set transparently by community leaders based on market demands, and sets a precedent for government regulation of private entities. He urges ITL (Inexpedient to Legislate) and reminds the committee of hospitals' $348 million Medicaid enhancement tax contribution, generating nearly $1 billion in Medicaid spending. During Q&A, he defends board decisions on compensation for sustainability, citing examples like handling the Change Healthcare cyber attack without halting care.
SB664: Karine Cascaden, NCH Board Member, Berlin, Littleton, Lyme Oppose01:09:34.319 - 9:13:40 AM; Karine Cascaden testifies in opposition to SB 664FN, arguing it is discriminatory and promotes government overreach against free market principles. As a former systems leader and current board member of North Country Healthcare (NCH), she emphasizes the critical need for accessible healthcare in rural Coos County, where NCH serves 60% of residents across three hospitals and affiliates. She highlights staffing shortages, economic distress, and the risk of rural hospital closures, noting four vulnerable in NH. Cascaden praises NCH's consistent positive operating income due to talented leadership and criticizes the bill's provisions: Part 1 ties executives' hands, reducing stability; Parts 2-3 misrepresent layoffs (fact-checked at community listening centers); Part 4 dictates compensation, ignoring regulated market benchmarking; Part 5 redundantly empowers the AG's Charitable Trusts Unit; Part 6 constitutes overreach; and the workforce reduction definition is overly broad, potentially penalizing necessary terminations. She urges ITL (Inexpedient to Legislate) to protect NCH, the largest employer north of the notch, serving an aging population with chronic illnesses. During Q&A, she clarifies listening centers addressed rumors of 150+ layoffs, revealing actual figures: 72 positions (some vacant), 30 retrained, 1 dismissal, 31 voluntary departures; no bonuses post-layoffs to her knowledge; and compensation follows regulated processes with performance goals.
SB664: Roxy Severance, NCH Board Chair, Whitefield Oppose01:27:52.560 - 9:31:58 AM; Roxy Severance, longtime Coos County resident, NCH board chair since 2018, and patient, opposes SB 664FN on behalf of herself and board colleagues. With 30+ years in senior care leadership, she stresses local boards' fiduciary duties in reviewing compensation via independent firms benchmarking against peers, noting NCH's CEO at 50th percentile despite managing three hospitals and a home health agency—unlike single-hospital CEOs like Cottage Hospital's at one-third the pay. She argues the bill undermines evidence-based governance, imposes arbitrary workforce reduction rules (e.g., 10 in a department), and hinders nimble adaptations in a complex, regulated industry amid shortages. Severance highlights NCH's positive margins, 1,100+ employees as largest regional employer, and national accolades, warning the bill risks recruitment/retention, federal funding eligibility ($21M rural transformation funds), innovation, and economic viability—potentially closing affiliates and delaying care for rural patients. She urges a 'no' vote to preserve local authority and fulfill NCH's mission. In Q&A, she explains a revenue department outsourcing avoided 60 layoffs (only 1 occurred; 30 rehomed, 30 self-selected out), emphasizes revenue collection needs in distressed areas, and notes denied claims (e.g., Change Healthcare issues) hurt operations, justifying expert outsourcing.
SB664: Greg Placey, NCH Passport Chair, Colebrook Oppose01:40:35.920 - 9:44:41 AM; Greg Placey, lifelong northern NH resident and NCH Passport Chair for 12 years (involved in its inception), opposes SB 664FN, providing letters from three northern EMS organizations including 45th Parallel EMS. As former Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital board member and EMS provider (1974-2011), he argues the bill hampers hiring qualified personnel by restricting executives, threatening the coordinated operation of three critical access hospitals and home health services. Placey credits expert leadership for preventing closures and maintaining vital local care, noting long transfer times to facilities like Dartmouth could be fatal without nearby hospitals (UCBH, AVH, Weeks). He emphasizes the bill unfairly targets NCH in a depressed, high-need area, where healthcare is essential for sick northern residents.
SB664: Mark Kelly, former NCH Board Chairman, Randolph, NH Oppose01:46:42.400 - 9:50:48 AM; Mark Kelly, a longtime board member of North Country Healthcare (NCH) and Androscoggin Valley Hospital, testified against SB 664FN. He explained the rigorous, IRS-compliant process NCH uses to set executive compensation, involving a dedicated compensation committee that reviews national, regional, and local data from independent firms like Sullivan Cotter. The process ensures compensation is reasonable, mission-aligned, and competitive to recruit and retain leaders, with base salaries at the 50th percentile and total compensation up to the 75th percentile. He argued the bill assumes a non-existent governance failure, imposes a freeze on compensation after department restructurings, undermines recruitment during crises, and targets only three Coos County hospitals, replacing robust board oversight with rigid statutory controls that could lead to service losses in rural areas.
SB664: Donald Crane, NCH Compensation Committee Chair, Littleton, NH Oppose01:56:54.800 - 10:01:00 AM; Donald Crane, a retired CPA and current chair of the NCH compensation committee, opposed SB 664FN, emphasizing that it threatens the autonomy of locally governed rural hospitals to make essential decisions for survival. He described NCH as the safety net for Coos County's vulnerable population, employing 1,000 people across three critical access hospitals. Compensation is set by an independent board using market benchmarks tied to performance, not management discretion. The bill, targeting only Coos County hospitals, assumes governance flaws that do not exist, restricts flexibility amid national rural healthcare crises, and could hinder recruitment, introduce uncertainty, and result in delayed care or job losses. He acknowledged the need for better communication but urged finding the bill inexpedient to legislate, seeking partnership with the legislature instead.
SB670 0782: David Roer, Senator District 1 Support02:04:27.760 - 10:08:33 AM; Senator Roer introduces SB 670-FN, explaining it was prompted by a shocking expose on the care and treatment of the developmentally disabled community. He emphasizes the vulnerability of this population and the state's duty to ensure proper care and accountability. The bill strengthens the developmental services oversight commission by clarifying membership and criteria, developed with input from health and human services, disability rights community, Senate leadership. He notes an amendment to address oversights in the draft and urges passage of both to improve oversight and reporting.
SB670 0782: Chris Bond, Associate Attorney General, with Dr. Jenny Duval, Chief Medical Examiner Information Only02:08:07.599 - 10:12:13 AM; Chris Bond from the Department of Justice shares concerns about the bill's broad definitions of 'incapacitated' and 'vulnerable' adults, which could require reporting the vast majority of adult deaths to the fatality review committee, overwhelming resources. He mentions a fiscal note for additional staff and attorneys. Dr. Duval highlights the volume: about 4500 adult deaths reported last year, or a dozen daily, which would need review. They agree to review the amendment and provide feedback, suggesting tweaks to definitions and roles, and discussing resource allocation between law enforcement and system review.
SB670 0782: Adidora Rodriguez Leandra, Executive Director, New Hampshire Council on Developmental Disabilities Support02:14:24.719 - 10:18:30 AM; Adidora supports the bill, stating current systems and policies are insufficient to protect vulnerable adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. She advocates for a stronger commission with legislative involvement for real-time improvements and better data access on deaths, abuse, background checks, and responses to reports. She notes her organization is not listed as a member but recommends adding the NH Council on Developmental Disabilities due to its federal mandate.
SB670 0782: Louis Espazito, Executive Director, Able New Hampshire, Hollis, NH Support02:18:04.880 - 10:22:10 AM; Louis shares his experience supporting people with disabilities, noting families' deep concerns about neglect and abuse, exacerbated by recent reports eroding trust in the system. He recounts a former non-verbal student who communicated distress through behaviors like hitting and biting, highlighting subtle signs of abuse that are hard to detect. He stresses the need for accountability to rebuild trust, especially as families transition students to adult services where turnover, undertraining, and high needs among direct support professionals pose risks. He believes the bill is a step toward repair.
SB670 0782: Martha Hickey, parent of son with autism Support02:22:54.399 - 10:27:00 AM; Martha describes her non-verbal son with autism expressing a desire for more independent living. As a self-directed model family, they controlled hiring and training, with her as supervisor, but expresses apprehension about handing over care due to past system failures highlighted by previous speakers.
SB670 0782: Karen Rosenberg Support02:23:47.439 - 10:27:53 AM; Karen Rosenberg shared a personal story about placing her son Billy, who has autism, in a farm-like residential facility after careful preparation. Despite providing all necessary information, within 48 hours, she was asked to remove him due to an anonymous DHS report. Investigations revealed negligence, including missing seizure medications found under furniture, leading to escalated behaviors in Billy that took over two months to stabilize. She emphasized the loss of trust and hoped the bill would improve inter-departmental communication to prevent such incidents.
SB670 0782: Karen Rosenberg, Policy Director, Disability Rights Center Support02:27:47.120 - 10:31:53 AM; Karen Rosenberg testified in support of the bill, thanking sponsors for addressing oversight issues exposed by New Hampshire Bulletin articles. She detailed involvement in developing sections starting at section three to strengthen the Incapacitated and Adult Fatality Review Committee, ensuring it receives appropriate referrals for confidential examination of deaths to prevent future occurrences and address systemic issues. She noted concerns about overly broad referral language and plans to refine it with the Attorney General's office. She also covered amendments to enhance reporting of serious incidents like bodily injury or death in state-funded residential services, expanding notifications to multiple agencies including the Disability Rights Center for better oversight, investigation, and prevention of abuse and neglect.
SB670 0782: Andrew Horn Support02:30:46.160 - 10:34:52 AM; Andrew Horn urged the committee to recommend 'ought to pass' on the bill, referencing the New Hampshire Bulletin's investigation exposing systematic abuse, neglect, and deaths in the disability care system. He emphasized that these are real people deserving protection and attached an amendment requiring at least two committee members with disabilities from represented agencies, invoking 'nothing about us without us.' As a person with a disability, he stressed the need for lived experience in analyzing deaths to prevent tragedies and fulfill the duty to protect vulnerable individuals.
SB670 0782: Karen Blake, North Woodstock Support02:33:27.200 - 10:37:33 AM; Karen Blake, director of community partnerships for Community Crossroads and involved in various councils, testifies personally in full support of the legislation. She shares her experience as the mother of a 19-year-old with a developmental disability, expressing uncertainty about his future care options like residential treatment or adult foster care. Having lost her husband and being in her mid-50s, she is concerned about the safety of her son and others in New Hampshire. She supports sections 3, 4, and 5, and suggests forming a commission with stakeholders and legislators. She questions how this would integrate with the existing Developmental Disability Quality Council, noting its robust role in addressing quality, safety, and quality of life issues.
SB670 0782: Marissa Berg, Community Support Network Support02:36:20.479 - 10:40:26 AM; Marissa Berg represents the Community Support Network, the association of 10 area agencies supporting people with developmental disabilities and acquired brain disorders. She expresses support for SB 670, particularly the changes in sections 3 and beyond, which she believes will advance safety and quality services. She highlights potential duplication between the proposed commission in sections 1 and 2 and the existing New Hampshire Developmental Disability Quality Council under RSA 171A:33, established in 2009. She provides a letter detailing overlapping memberships and seats, emphasizing the council's requirement for at least 51% membership of people with disabilities to ensure meaningful voice. She suggests amendments to avoid confusion, recommending discussion with quality council members, and offers to answer questions.
SB670 0782: Lisa Boddin, Strategies for Disability Equity Support02:40:06.000 - 10:44:12 AM; Lisa Boddin, a disability policy professional with Strategies for Disability Equity and a parent, supports the bill and agrees with previous testimony. She notes families' horror, terror, and frustration over known issues of abuse and neglect reported in the New Hampshire Bulletin, which were not unknown to the Bureau of Developmental Services, Department of Health and Human Services, and others. She criticizes the lack of warning flags, accountability rubrics for entities including nonprofits, the Bureau of Developmental Services, and Bureau of Adult and Elderly Affairs. She emphasizes the need for pattern recognition, corrective action, and holding managerial positions accountable for documented abuse. She mentions the quality council's long-standing demands for data from DHHS to fulfill its mandate, met with institutional non-compliance, and submits her written testimony.
SB665: Senator Denise Rashardi, District 9 Support02:44:36.960 - 10:48:42 AM; Senator Denise Rashardi introduces SB 665, which requires pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to disclose the lowest available price to consumers at the point of sale to drive down health care costs. Inspired by constituent concerns about PBMs withholding information on lower-cost options like coupons, direct pharmacy purchases, therapeutic equivalents, or cash payments instead of co-pays, she explains how this ambiguity allows PBMs to profit from rebates, spread pricing, fees, or steering. The bill promotes transparency and fair competition without dictating prices, correcting market power abuses. She provides an example of a constituent overpaying for migraine medication due to undisclosed options and urges passage to reduce costs for Granite Staters.
SB665: Jeb Curlup, Merrimack Support02:49:00.000 - 10:53:06 AM; Jeb Curlup, a resident of Merrimack, New Hampshire, supports SB 665 for promoting transparency and full disclosure to lower health care costs. He shares a personal experience at Walgreens in Nashua where his 90-day blood pressure prescription initially cost $95.49, but after asking about discounts, rebates, coupons, or direct purchase, it dropped to $35.69, saving him $59.80. He notes consumers must know to ask, and the bill would automatically require pharmacies to provide the lowest price using existing rebates and discounts without altering contracts. This instills honesty, ensures all citizens benefit, and drives down health care costs, addressing unwitting overpayments statewide.
Unclear: Committee Members Vote02:53:07.040 - 10:57:13 AM; The committee moves into executive session. They discuss and vote on several bills: For SB 441, they adopt amendment 2024-446 (from New Hampshire Legal Assistance, preferred over 722 after consultation with municipal association and prime sponsor), then vote to ought to pass as amended by consent calendar (3-2 vote, with one senator supporting the amendment but opposing the underlying bill for granting new municipal authority). For SB 455, they adopt amendment 0637s (a 'belt and suspenders' approach to institutionalize DHHS coverage protections against policy cuts), then vote to ought to pass as amended by consent. For SB 480, they move amendment 0776s (compromising on 12 visits despite preference for more) and second the motion to pass, with discussion ongoing.
Unclear: Senator Birdsell Information Only02:59:35.760 - 11:03:41 AM; Discusses compromise on SB 480, narrowing to PT and OT services, reducing from 12 to 8 treatments, mirroring other states, and offers to hold the line despite no agreement from plans.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:00:42.399 - 11:04:48 AM; Calls vote on amendment 0776s to SB 480, passes unanimously, then moves to pass as amended, which passes.
Unclear: Senator Birdsell Support03:01:33.760 - 11:05:39 AM; Supports moving SB 498 forward despite not full agreement, notes stakeholders including advocacy groups and carriers are close, and hopes they wrap up while bill proceeds to finance.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:02:19.680 - 11:06:25 AM; Calls vote on SB 498 ought to pass, passes 4-1, then consent, passes unanimously.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:03:39.040 - 11:07:45 AM; Moves and seconds interim study on SB 506, explains concurrence with House and no need but holds in study, passes 4-1, consent passes.
Unclear: Senator (unnamed) Information Only03:03:39.040 - 11:07:45 AM; States position on work requirements in Medicaid but supports interim study as appropriate.
Unclear: Committee Chair Information Only03:04:46.399 - 11:08:52 AM; Notes amendment on SB 544 not ready, skips to SB 645.
Unclear: Senator Rearen Vote03:05:41.359 - 11:09:47 AM; Has amendment on SB 645 related to dog racing.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:06:26.560 - 11:10:32 AM; Moves ought to pass on SB 645, adopts Senator Rearen's amendment 0104 (passes unanimously), then own amendment 0791 (explained below), passes unanimously, ought to pass as amended passes 5-0, consent passes.
Unclear: Committee Chair Information Only03:07:35.760 - 11:11:41 AM; Explains amendment 0791 to SB 645: Funds children's education/child care scholarship from surplus revenues (tobacco tax, alcohol, games, racing) only after budgeted amounts met, 50% to fund and 50% to general fund for predictability.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:09:43.760 - 11:13:49 AM; Moves ought to pass as amended on SB 645, passes unanimously, consent passes.
Unclear: Committee Chair Information Only03:11:12.960 - 11:15:18 AM; On SB 646, no amendment, moves ought to pass to keep moving while awaiting stakeholder feedback, similar to SB 498.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:11:12.960 - 11:15:18 AM; Vote on SB 646 ought to pass passes unanimously, consent passes.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:13:13.359 - 11:17:19 AM; Moves interim study on SB 611, passes unanimously, consent passes.
Unclear: Committee Chair Information Only03:14:16.720 - 11:18:22 AM; Updates on pending amendments: Working on PBM reform encompassing SB 478, 547, 671, 665; SB 544 amendment by Senator Apprentice; SB 546 one more week; SB 549 needs sponsor talk; SB 612 possible amendment by Senator Avard; SB 666 amendment by Senator Apprentice based on AG comments; SB 670 needs amendment.
Unclear: Senator Avard Vote03:17:52.160 - 11:21:58 AM; Moves ought to pass on SB 548 with amendment 0798s from Department of Insurance as negotiated compromise: Provides template for joint letter in provider contract disputes, criteria for non-use; passes unanimously, ought to pass as amended passes, consent passes.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:20:42.000 - 11:24:48 AM; Moves interim study on SB 609 (improving screening for blood clots), explains existing standards, healthcare quality commission (RSA 151:57) appropriate venue, issue raised and addressed without legislation, passes unanimously, consent passes.
Unclear: Senator (unnamed) Information Only03:20:42.000 - 11:24:48 AM; Acknowledges testimony from affected mom, notes federal CMS requirements and standard of care already in place, tragic event brought attention but addressed.
Unclear: Committee Chair Information Only03:23:56.640 - 11:28:02 AM; Updates: Amendment revision on unnamed bill next week; SB 614 amendment with DOI on definitions for pooled risk management for child care; next session in two weeks on SNAP, PBM, child care, harm reduction.
Unclear: Committee Chair Vote03:25:55.680 - 11:30:01 AM; Moves to adjourn executive session, passes unanimously.

Rochefort, David(Chairman)(R)[B-]2025	Avard, Kevin(V Chairman)(R)[B]2025	Birdsell, Regina(R)[B-]2025
Prentiss, Suzanne(D)[F]2025	Long, Pat(D)[F]2025