Medical marijuana legalization is a potential way to help fight the opioid epidemic, as it is a safer alternative. As a result of easy accessibility and staggering numbers of opioid-related deaths, The United States has declared itself in an opioid crisis. Over the past 15 years, opioid overdose has risen dramatically, drawing concern among doctors, patients, and patients’ family members. The nation is left searching for solutions and better alternatives and medical marijuana may be the answer, experts suggest. Medical marijuana can offer equal pain relief with a much lower chance of addiction and zero chance of overdose. Opioids have been implicated in over “500,000 deaths since 2000” while there have been “virtually no deaths from marijuana …show more content…
According the journal Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, some people may develop mild marijuana dependence, but unlike opioids, it can be “reversed by abstinence or treated by cognitive-behavioral therapy” (Kogan and Mechoulam 414). Opioid addiction is notoriously difficult to treat, especially in comparison to marijuana dependence. Marijuana dependence is easier to treat and comes with less negative withdrawal symptoms, making it a far safer, less risky option. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that legal access to medical marijuana can reduce the use of opioids as well as opioid-related overdose death. This idea is reflected in a 2014 study, where it found that States with medical marijuana had “24.8% fewer opioid overdose deaths between 1999 and 2010” (Lieber). The rationale for this is simple: medical marijuana can effectively treat chronic pain, which opioids are commonly used for. The effects of medical marijuana on opioid use in pain patients are documented, with data suggesting, “medical [marijuana] treatment may reduce the dose of opioids required for pain relief” (Marijuana Effective as