A recent study has suggested that, since the legalization of medical marijuana in certain states, the presence of opioids has dropped significantly. The study focused on a time period between 1993-2013, analyzing crash data from 18 different states that have legalized the use of medical marijuana in that time. The study, conducted by Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, has discovered that drivers in those 18 states are less likely to test positive for opioids in car crashes.
“We would expect the adverse consequences of opioid use to decrease over time in states where medical marijuana use is legal, as individuals substitute marijuana for opioids in the treatment of severe or chronic pain,” said June H. Kim, the study’s lead author.
What this means is that patients who are suffering from chronic pain are more likely to substitute marijuana for prescription painkillers that could have far more severe side effects. Indeed, the study shows that the case is true in the states that offer medical marijuana as an alternative. States that do not offer marijuana as an alternative see a higher rate of painkiller overdoses than states that do.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention revealed 19,000 people died in 2014 from prescription drug overdoses. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, there has not been a recorded death by overdosing on marijuana. Medical marijuana is available in 25 states, though the restrictions vary from state to state.
But the study has shown that drivers from the age of 21-40 are more favorable to using medical marijuana as an alternative. Prescription painkillers and other opioid use were major causes of fatal car crashes between the 1993-2013 time frame, but since the legalization of medical marijuana, that number has steadily decreased.
As medical marijuana becomes more popular, prescription painkiller distributors and industries are pouring funds into anti-marijuana legislation. The company that produces fentanyl–a controlled substance that has a high risk for addiction and dependence–recently dumped half a million dollars into campaigns that are against the full legalization of marijuana in Arizona.
It is the largest donation for that cause ever.
