Many Medical Marijuana Patients Stop Using Opioids, Survey Finds

Paul Armentano | November 16, 2017 CHICAGO, IL — More than two out of three medical marijuana patients substitute cannabis in place of opioids, according to survey data compiled by Aclara Research, a Chicago-based consulting firm. Sixty-seven percent of respondents reported that they ceased their opioid use after initiating cannabis therapy. Twenty-nine percent of respondents said that cannabis allowed them to decrease their …

Medical Marijuana Patients More Likely to Stop Using Opioids vs Non-Participants

Paul Armentano | November 17, 2017 Chronic pain patients enrolled in a statewide medical cannabis access program are significantly more likely to either reduce or cease their use of opioids as compared to non-enrolled patients suffering from similar pain conditions, according to data published online in the journal PLOS One. A team of investigators at the University of New Mexico assessed opioid prescription …

Marijuana Dispensaries Can Lead to Decrease in Painkiller Abuse: Study

NORML | October 6, 2017 ATHENS, GA — Cannabis dispensaries are associated with reduced levels of opioid-related treatment admissions and overall drug mortality, according to a study published online on SSRN.com. A University of Georgia economics professor assessed the relationship between the opening of medical cannabis dispensaries and drug treatment admissions. Dispensary openings are associated with “a 20 percentage point relative decrease in …