Mo Baxley

2/11/26 Good afternoon members of the Health and Human Services Committee. My name is Mo Baxley from Granite State Independent Living. We are a statewide organization whose mission is to promote quality of life with independence for people with disabilities. I am testifying on HB1317. This bill seeks to protect medical privacy for New Hampshire citizens. This bill is needed to protect people from intrusive violations of privacy regarding their medical records. We live in a world where technology is changing more rapidly than our laws and protections. In this data driven world we need to be proactive about protecting our most personal data. The NH disability community has real reason to fear the sharing of information that can be monetized in an exploitive manner to their detriment. In the past this information was weaponized against people with disabilities and led to such practices as forced sterilization, prohibition on marriage and social stigmatizing. The New Hampshire Constitution grants the right to privacy of information stating, “An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent”. Thank you for your service to our state. Mo Baxley