Tags : opioid epidemic

States With Medical Marijuana Laws Saw 20% Drop In Some Opioid Prescriptions

Marijuana Moment May 29, 2020

States with active medical marijuana laws saw certain opioid prescription rates drop nearly 20 percent compared to prohibition states, a first-of-its-kind study out of Columbia University’s Irving Medical Center has found. Authors said the findings underscore the importance of providing patients with pain management alternatives, such as cannabis, in efforts to reduce opioid use. Drug […]Read More

Marijuana Seems To Reduce Opioid Use Among Chronic Pain Patients, Meta-Study Finds

Marijuana Moment April 29, 2020

Legalization advocates have long argued that marijuana represents a potentially effective treatment option for chronic pain and could serve as an alternative to opioid-based painkillers—and according to a new scientific meta-analysis, they may be onto something. Analyzing nine published studies on the subject, a team of graduate students at the University of Arizona’s College of […]Read More

Federal Agency Wants Public’s Help Finding Research On Medical Marijuana For Pain And Migraines

Marijuana Moment January 21, 2020

A federal agency is asking the public to submit scientific data on the potential benefits of marijuana for people with acute pain and migraine headaches. In two notices published in the Federal Register this month, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) said it is conducting a review of treatment approaches to the two […]Read More

Opioid Prescriptions Down In States With Legal Marijuana, Study Finds

Marijuana Moment December 18, 2019

Study after study continues to show that when given a choice patients will choose marijuana over prescription opioids and, according to new research, doctors prescribe fewer opioids in states with recreational and medical cannabis laws on the books. “These laws also reduce the total days supply of opioids prescribed, the total number of patients receiving […]Read More

Andrew Yang Contrasts Rampant Opioid Prescribing With Marijuana Criminalization

Marijuana Moment December 12, 2019

Andrew Yang contrasted the widespread prescribing of opioids with the ongoing criminalization of marijuana on Wednesday. In a tweet, the entrepreneur and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate said there were “more opiate prescriptions in the state of Ohio than people in Ohio,” yet “marijuana is still classified as a schedule 1 drug” under the federal Controlled Substances Act. […]Read More

Everyday Marijuana Use Reduces Opioid Consumption By Chronic Pain Patients, Study Finds

Marijuana Moment November 22, 2019

A number of studies have shown that people dealing with chronic pain issues find themselves substituting medical marijuana for prescription painkillers. And according to new research out this week, they’re also using cannabis to replace opioids that weren’t prescribed by a doctor, such as heroin. “We observed an independent negative association between frequent cannabis use and […]Read More

Hemp Derived CBD Helps Chronic Pain Patients Reduce Opioid Use, Study Finds

Marijuana Moment November 15, 2019

Chronic pain patients consuming hemp-derived cannabidiol, or CBD, on a daily basis for eight weeks reported a decrease in the opioid medications they needed, a new study reports. “This is a prospective, single-arm cohort study for the potential role of cannabinoids as an alternative for opioids,” the paper states. “The results indicate that using the […]Read More

Feds Award $3 Million In Grants To Study Marijuana Ingredients As Alternatives To Opioids

Marijuana Moment September 27, 2019

The federal government has awarded $3 million in grants for research into the therapeutic benefits of ingredients in marijuana other than THC, emphasizing their potential as alternatives to prescription opioids. In a notice published on Thursday, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) explained why the studies were necessary and listed grant recipients and the subjects […]Read More

Legal Medical Marijuana Tied To Lower Opioid Use, Another Study Finds

Marijuana Moment June 5, 2019

Adding to the ever-growing body of research that suggests legal access to marijuana may help mitigate the opioid crisis, a new study found that states with medical cannabis laws have seen a drop in opioid prescriptions for people aged 55 and younger. Researchers from the University of Texas investigated prescription opioid use among people with […]Read More

Congressional Committee To Vote On Two Marijuana Bills for Veterans

Marijuana Moment May 7, 2019

Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan. Two bills focusing on medical marijuana access for military veterans are scheduled to be voted on by a congressional committee on Wednesday. With marijuana proving to be a successful alternative to opioids — an abuse epidemic that disproportionately impacts veterans — the issue is timely. The development comes one week after […]Read More