Working Paper: NBER ID: w29087
Authors: Mir M. Ali; Chandler B. McClellan; Ryan Mutter; Daniel I. Rees
Abstract: Recent studies have concluded that state laws legalizing medical marijuana can reduce deaths from opioid overdoses. Using data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, a survey uniquely suited to assessing drug misuse, we examine the relationship between recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) and the use of opioids. Standard difference-in-differences (DD) regression estimates indicate that RMLs do not affect the likelihood of misusing prescription pain relievers such as OxyContin, Percocet, and Vicodin. Although DD regression estimates provide evidence that state laws legalizing recreational marijuana can reduce the frequency of misusing prescription pain relievers, event-study estimates are noisy and suggest that any effect on the frequency of misuse is likely transitory.
Keywords: Recreational Marijuana; Opioid Misuse; Public Health; Difference-in-Differences
JEL Codes: I12
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) (R48) | opioid misuse (I12) |
| recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) (R48) | marijuana consumption (I12) |
| marijuana consumption (I12) | opioid misuse (I12) |
| recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) (R48) | opioid misuse frequency (I12) |