Study Finds Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths in States with Access to Medical Cannabis
Access to medical cannabis is associated with nearly 25 percent fewer prescription drug overdoses each year compared to states where medical cannabis is illegal, a new study suggests.
The study comes during a time of increased painkiller abuse. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), roughly 100 Americans die every day from narcotic painkiller overdose. In 1999, there were 4,030 opioid overdoses. This has increased significantly, with 16,651 opioid overdoses reported in 2010. Approximately 60 percent of deaths from opioid analgesic overdoses occur in patients who have legitimate prescriptions.
The study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, found that deaths associated with the use of opiate drugs fell in 13 states after they legalized medical cannabis, indicating that the alternative treatment may be safer for patients suffering from chronic pain related to cancer and other conditions.
Researchers said that states that pass medical cannabis laws see their overdose death rates decrease dramatically in the years immediately afterward, strengthening over time. Deaths were nearly 20 percent lower in the first year after a state’s law was implemented, and 33.7 percent lower five years after implementation.
Lead author Marcus A. Bachhuber, MD, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar at Penn and the Philadelphia VA Medical Center said that although evidence for the pain-relieving properties of cannabis is limited, some studies have suggested that it may provide relief for some people. “In addition, people already taking opioids for pain may supplement with medical marijuana and be able to lower their painkiller dose, thus lowering their risk of overdose,” Dr. Bachhuber said.
Cannabis and opioids stimulate similar areas in the brain’s pathways, therefore medical cannabis laws may change the way people misuse or abuse opioid painkillers.
The authors noted that the exact mechanism underlying these study results is unclear and the study does not prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship between medical cannabis laws and overdose deaths. They did suggest that as more states implement medical cannabis laws, future studies should examine the association between such laws and opioid overdoses to confirm their findings.
Sources: JAMA Internal Medicine; University of Pennsylvania Health System
Last updated: 8/26/14; 11:10am EST
