Two new papers provide further evidence of marijuana reform aiding with opioid crisis

As reported via this CNN article, headlined "Marijuana legalization could help offset opioid epidemic, studies find," this weeks bring the publication of notable new research suggesting a link between marijuana access and reduced use of opioids. Here are the basics:

Experts have proposed using medical marijuana to help Americans struggling with opioid addiction. Now, two studies suggest that there is merit to that strategy. The studies, published Monday in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, compared opioid prescription patterns in states that have enacted medical cannabis laws with those that have not. One of the studies looked at opioid prescriptions covered by Medicare Part D between 2010 and 2015, while the other looked at opioid prescriptions covered by Medicaid between 2011 and 2016.

The researchers found that states that allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes had 2.21 million fewer daily doses of opioids prescribed per year under Medicare Part D, compared with those states without medical cannabis laws. Opioid prescriptions under Medicaid also dropped by 5.88% in states with medical cannabis laws compared with states without such laws, according to the studies....

In order to evaluate whether medical marijuana could function as an effective and safe alternative to opioids, the two teams of researchers looked at whether opioid prescriptions were lower in states that had active medical cannabis laws and whether those states that enacted these laws during the study period saw reductions in opioid prescriptions.

Both teams, in fact, did find that opioid prescriptions were significantly lower in states that had enacted medical cannabis laws. The team that looked at Medicaid patients also found that the four states that switched from medical use only to recreational use -- Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington -- saw further reductions in opioid prescriptions, according to Hefei Wen, assistant professor of health management and policy at the University of Kentucky and a lead author on the Medicaid study. "We saw a 9% or 10% reduction (in opioid prescriptions) in Colorado and Oregon," Wen said. "And in Alaska and Washington, the magnitude was a little bit smaller but still significant."...

The details of the medical cannabis laws were found to have a significant impact on opioid prescription patterns, the researchers found. States that permitted recreational use, for example, saw an additional 6.38% reduction in opioid prescriptions under Medicaid compared with those states that permitted marijuana only for medical use, according to Wen.

The method of procurement also had a significant impact on opioid prescription patterns. States that permitted medical dispensaries -- regulated shops that people can visit to purchase cannabis products -- had 3.742 million fewer opioid prescriptions filled per year under Medicare Part D, while those that allowed only home cultivation had 1.792 million fewer opioid prescriptions per year.

"We found that there was about a 14.5% reduction in any opiate use when dispensaries were turned on -- and that was statistically significant -- and about a 7% reduction in any opiate use when home cultivation only was turned on," Bradford said. "So dispensaries are much more powerful in terms of shifting people away from the use of opiates."...

This is not the first time researchers have found a link between marijuana legalization and decreased opioid use. A 2014 study showed that states with medical cannabis laws had 24.8% fewer opioid overdose deaths between 1999 and 2010. A study in 2017 also found that the legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado in 2012 reversed the state's upward trend in opioid-related deaths.

Here are links to the JAMA Internal Medicine articles referenced here, as well as a companion commentary:

Medical and Adult-Use Marijuana Laws and Opioid Prescribing for Medicaid Enrollees by Hefei Wen & Jason Hockenberry

Association Between US State Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Prescribing in the Medicare Part D Population by Ashley C. Bradford et al

The Role of Cannabis Legalization in the Opioid Crisis by Kevin Hill & Andrew Saxon

 

Some (of many) prior related posts:

• Given latest opioid death data, should Ohio officials be fast-tracking access to medical marijuana?
• "The Case for Pot in the Age of Opioids: Legalizing medical marijuana could save lives that may otherwise be lost to opioid addiction."
• "Can medical marijuana be used to treat heroin addiction?"
• Yet another study suggests link between medical marijuana availability and decreased opioid use
• "Could medical marijuana solve Ohio's opioid problem?"
• "Legalize marijuana and reduce deaths from drug abuse"
• "Obama’s Opioid Offensive Again Ignores the Cannabis Solution"
• "Is marijuana a secret weapon against the opioid epidemic?"
• "Cannabis as a Substitute for Opioid-Based Pain Medication: Patient Self-Report"
• "The use of cannabis in response to the opioid crisis: A review of the literature"
• Still more talk, from notable conservative outlets, about possible benefits of marijuana reform amidst opioid crisis