Study: Legal Access to Medical Cannabis Associated With Reduced Opioid Addiction and Deaths
States that have legalized medical cannabis dispensaries have a lower rate of opioid addictions and overdose deaths, according to a new study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
For the study, researchers at the RAND Corporation and the University of California assessed the impact of medical cannabis laws on opioid abuse. They did this by measuring treatment admissions for opioid pain reliever addiction, and by assessing state-level opioid overdose deaths (between the years of 1999 and 2013).
“[S]tates permitting medical marijuana dispensaries experience a relative decrease in both opioid addictions and opioid overdose deaths compared to states that do not,” states the study’s authors.
The study’s results are similar to those of a study published last August in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, which found that medical cannabis states have seen a reduction in opioid overdose deaths by as much as 50%.
An opioid is a chemical painkiller – such as morphine, oxycodone and methadone – that resembles the pain relieving effects of opiates.
– TheJointBlog
David
I know so many people who were formerly addicted to opiates and were subsequently able to scale off them entirely using marijuana. Edibles seemed to work the best (and a good hash-oil vape pen)s) using edibles, it’s easier to keep your dosage of THC constant.
The Irony is that Washington State has for years had the highest accidental opiate over-dose rate for persons 55+ in America. Washington’s Democrat Governor just signed into State law a Republican sponsored State Senate Bill (SB5052). This new law was a Trojan Horse designed to kill off our States 1998 MMJ law know as RCW69.51A.
1998’s RCW51,69A no longer exists as State law following the passage and signing of Republican Senate Bill SB5052. I’m checking with an attorney now to see if Washington actually has a State legal medical marijuana law on the books. I don’t think we do.
The end game here is pretty easy to see. Once the State Senate finally accomplished it’s goal of killing off Washington’s popular 17 year old medical marijuana law, they knew it wouldn’t be such a great leap to set the stage for the eventual elimination of Washington’s States newer, recreational marijuana law too. They are working hard to stop recreational in Washington, just like they stopped State medical marijuanal law.