Voting Yes for Medical or Recreational Marijuana Legalization Will Probably Save Lives: Your Vote Matters

Voting Yes for Medical or Recreational Marijuana Legalization Will Probably Save Lives: Your Vote Matters
This year’s election is already underway and while most of us are paying attention to the presidential candidates, there are a lot of other elected positions and ballot measures that are important to consider. One issue, being voted on in nine states, regards varying levels of marijuana legalization, either for medical or recreational use. As an addiction treatment professional who closely follows healthcare issues, I urge you to consider a yes vote if your state has a marijuana legalization measure on the ballot. Doing so probably will save lives that would otherwise be lost to opioid abuse and addiction.
Is the legalization of medical or recreational marijuana a solution for America’s opioid epidemic? It certainly isn’t the be all, end all, but there is a clear connection between decreased opioid overdose death rates and medical marijuana legalization. Although there is little research on medical marijuana’s efficacy done in the United States, because it is a Schedule 1 drug, there is growing evidence that marijuana could be an appropriate and less addictive substitute for opioid pain medication. If the trend toward legalization continues, we should encourage physicians to prescribe marijuana instead of opioids.
Choice is an important part of an individual’s healthcare. In this election cycle, nine states are considering either medical or recreational marijuan...

Source: Cliffside Malibu - October 25, 2016 Category: Addiction Authors: Richard Taite Tags: Richard Taite addiction Addiction Recovery addiction treatment addiction treatment center alcoholism drug abuse drug addiction drug treatment center prescription drug abuse prescription drug addiction substance abuse Source Type: blogs