Safer Roads In States That Have Embraced Medical Cannabis
The various states in the U.S. that have embraced legalization of cannabis, have seen a notable decrease in traffic fatalities. According to a study that was published in the American Journal of Public Health, at the end of last year, it has been estimated that traffic fatalities have reduced by roughly 11 percent on average in those states with medical cannabis laws.
The study collected data between 1985 and 2014 and researchers concluded that when compared to states that don't have any medical cannabis laws, those which did have them saw 26 percent fewer traffic accidents that resulted in a fatality. The 25-44 age group is commonly the demographic which has the highest percentage of alcohol-related incidents as far as traffic fatalities go. And the greatest change that researchers found when they conducted the study, was that the 25-44 age group saw the most notable decrease of traffic fatalities.
However, some states haven't seen as much success.
For California and New Mexico for example, they initially saw a reduction in traffic fatalities that slowly increased over time. And in their same study they also note that for the age group 45 and older, which are overrepresented in the population for being registered to use medical cannabis, they didn't see a decease in traffic fatalities.
Researchers note that there could be a number of explanations as to why those states are seeing decreases in traffic fatalities, such as law enforcement differences, variation of public health programs, infrastructure characteristics, and more.
As of today there are a number of states that support cannabis for either recreational or medicinal purposes and it's expected that the number will only increase into the future. A number of polls have found that the majority of Americans do support legalization in some form or another, so hopefully it won't be long before federal authorities embrace some common sense in this matter.
pics:
pixabay
sources:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobsullum/2014/04/03/more-pot-safer-roads-marijuana-legalization-could-bring-unexpected-benefits/#65285fd63781
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobsullum/2014/07/10/how-is-marijuana-legalization-going-so-far-the-price-of-pot-peace-looks-like-a-bargain/#44090692167c
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2014/08/05/since-marijuana-legalization-highway-fatalities-in-colorado-are-at-near-historic-lows/?utm_term=.8b188a0183fb
http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2016.303577
http://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddisalvo/2016/12/31/states-with-medical-marijuana-laws-have-fewer-traffic-fatalities-but-why-isnt-clear/2/#2ea6e7303644
This post has been ranked within the top 25 most undervalued posts in the second half of Jan 17. We estimate that this post is undervalued by $9.72 as compared to a scenario in which every voter had an equal say.
See the full rankings and details in The Daily Tribune: Jan 17 - Part II. You can also read about some of our methodology, data analysis and technical details in our initial post.
If you are the author and would prefer not to receive these comments, simply reply "Stop" to this comment.