--- title: States With Medical Marijuana Laws Have Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths description: Though it's not totally clear why canonical: https://time.com/3175582/states-with-medical-marijuana-laws-have-fewer-opioid-overdose-deaths/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-25T20:08:23.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:05:32.554Z article:section: Health og:title: States With Medical Marijuana Laws Have Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths og:description: Though it's not totally clear why og:url: https://time.com/3175582/states-with-medical-marijuana-laws-have-fewer-opioid-overdose-deaths/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: States With Medical Marijuana Laws Have Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths twitter:description: Though it's not totally clear why twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # States With Medical Marijuana Laws Have Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=b26e5bc8-25df-4670-8424-69e99e34d1e8&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Colorado Sets Rules For Pot Edibles [Watch (HLS stream): Colorado Sets Rules For Pot Edibles](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/s9DsgdzE.m3u8) (1:30)  _Published 2014-08-01. Colorado officials are tightening the rules and regulations for pot edibles to make accidental overdoses more difficult. Regulators drafted an emergency rule making it easier for consumers to tell how much THC is in the edibles they’re consuming._ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Aug 25, 2014 8:08 PM UTC by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Aug 25, 2014 8:08 PM UTC States with medical marijuana laws have fewer deaths from opioid overdoses compared to states that do not allow medical marijuana, according to [new research](//archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?doi=10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.4005). Opioids for chronic pain, like OxyContin, Percocet and Vicodin, are meant to suppress pain. Recent data shows that not only are prescriptions for these drugs up, but [rates of overdose and death are increasing](http://time.com/2822381/chicago-blaims-big-pharma-for-epidemic-addictions-to-painkillers/) as well. New research published Monday in the journal _JAMA Internal Medicine_ shows that states with medical marijuana laws have rates of anticipated opioid-related deaths 25% lower than states that don’t allow it. The researchers looked at death rates from opioids between 1999 and 2010 and found that the 13 states that allowed medical marijuana at the time had lower opioid mortality rates–the hypothesis being that patients with chronic pain perhaps switched from the heavy drugs to marijuana, since cannabinoids in marijuana react similarly in the brain. About 60% of all opioid deaths happen among people who have legitimate prescriptions, but abuse is also problematic. “Among people who use opioids illicitly, a relatively high proportion of them also use marijuana,” says study author Dr. Marcus Bachhuber of the Philadelphia VA Medical Center. Though the findings are intriguing, the researchers could not prove causation, and there are many possible explanations for the findings. States with medical marijuana laws may also have implemented more rules regarding opioid prescriptions or offered more education to doctors and patients about their addictive qualities. And several states like Minnesota and New York have passed at least limited legalized medical marijuana since 2010, so the findings already need to be updated. Still, if there is in fact an association, Bachhuber believes it’s encouraging. “I think that any change that leads to fewer people dying of opioid overdoses would be a positive.” The researchers say more research is needed to understand why people choose medical marijuana and whether people at risk for opioid abuse would consider it as an alternative. There’s also the issue of presenting a split medical community with the risks and benefits of prescribing someone marijuana. “I know many doctors struggle with the issue of who would be best to treat medical marijuana. There are some doctors who say that there is no valid medical use,” says Bachhuber. “I think that leaves a tremendous opportunity for future studies to help guide use to look at the risk and benefits and in clinical practice.” ## Transcript Colorado officials are tightening the rules and regulations of pot edibles to make accidental overdoses more difficult. The state does recreational edibles to contain up to 100 mg of THC, the active ingredient in pot. The regulators are concerned about overdoses and are also asking for more child- resistant packaging. To address this concern, regulators drafted an emergency rule Thursday that makes it easier for consumers to tell how much THC is in the edibles they are consuming. The result is weaker edible marijuana products and new packaging requirements. Consuming too much marijuana can severely impair judgement and deadly consequences have been noted in the past. Back in April, a Wyoming college student ate a marijuana cookie and fell off a hotel balcony to his death. Many marijuana edibles have been sold in 100 milligram packages in the past, but many experienced users say about half of that. Will have a significant affect on them. Yeah I mean for me, personally, like, to feel like pretty high, like 50. For me, 50mg works. So maybe try half the cookie? As the Denver Post points out under the new regulations, marijuana edibles can still contain up to 100mg of thc, but they must be easily broken into pieces that contain 10mg or less and be clearly marked with the amount. Similar regulations with marijuana edibles have already been enforced in Washington. 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