The opioid epidemic in the United States has accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 2021, roughly a third of Americans now live in a state with a recreational cannabis law (RCL). Recent evidence indicates RCLs could be a harm reduction tool to address the opioid epidemic. Individuals may use cannabis to manage pain, as well as to relieve opioid withdrawal symptoms, though it does not directly treat opioid use disorder. It is thus unclear whether RCLs are an effective policy tool to reduce adverse opioid-related health outcomes. In this study, we examine the impact of RCLs on a key opioid-related adverse health outcome: opioid-related emergency department (ED) visit rates. We estimate event study models using nearly comprehensive ED data from 29 states from 2011 to 2017. We find that RCLs reduce opioid-related ED visit rates by roughly 7.6% for two quarters after implementation. These effects are driven by men and adults aged 25–44. These effects dissipate after 6 months. Our estimates indicate RCLs did not increase opioid-related ED visits. We conclude that, while cannabis liberalization may offer some help in curbing the opioid epidemic, it is likely not a panacea.

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休闲大麻法和与阿片类药物相关的急诊科就诊率

在 COVID-19 大流行期间，美国的阿片类药物流行加速。截至 2021 年，大约三分之一的美国人现在居住在制定休闲大麻法 (RCL) 的州。最近的证据表明，RCL 可能是解决阿片类药物泛滥问题的一种减少危害的工具。个人可以使用大麻来控制疼痛，以及缓解阿片类药物戒断症状，​​但它不能直接治疗阿片类药物使用障碍。因此，尚不清楚 RCL 是否是减少阿片类药物相关健康不良后果的有效政策工具。在这项研究中，我们研究了 RCL 对阿片类药物相关的一个关键不良健康结果的影响：阿片类药物相关的急诊科 (ED) 就诊率。我们使用 2011 年至 2017 年 29 个州近乎全面的 ED 数据来估计事件研究模型。我们发现，RCL 在实施后的两个季度内将阿片类药物相关的 ED 就诊率降低了约 7.6%。这些影响是由 25-44 岁的男性和成年人驱动的。这些影响会在 6 个月后消失。我们的估计表明 RCL 并没有增加阿片类药物相关的急诊就诊次数。我们的结论是，虽然大麻自由化可能为遏制阿片类药物流行提供一些帮助，但它可能不是万能药。