Does Medical Marijuana Affect Your Drivers’ Abilities?

Here in Georgia, there’s been a lot of talk about legalizing marijuana. While we all know recreational marijuana use probably won’t pass for a very long time, the legalization of medical marijuana may very well happen- and sooner rather than later! If you’re a Georgian, you may already know that cannabis oil as a medical treatment for certain ailments has already been passed. There are currently 8 disorders that allow the use of cannabis oil treatment including cancer, Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s, MS, and Lou Gherig’s disease, among others.

Although many regulations and hurdles still remain in place to prevent the abuse of marijuana, this could prove to be a major turning point in Georgia’s conservative drug legislation. The question now becomes a matter of when as opposed to if further legalization will occur.

Due to these changes, some citizens wonder how this will affect public safety in the future, as “controlled substances” aren’t necessarily hard to come by or well “controlled”- consider prescription drugs such as Xanax, Ambien, Hydrocodone, Ketamine, Morphine, and others. How will these regulations impact the future of Georgians in the workplace? On the roads? At parties, even? Will it affect any of us without these conditions at all?

It might…

Some states have had legalized medical marijuana provisions for years. California has allowed the use of marijuana for medical purposes since 1996. Other states have legalized marijuana for both medical use and for recreational use (Colorado, Alaska, Washington).  What have these states experienced in the wake of their new legal stance on marijuana?

Take a look at just one aspect, for now. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has completed several studies on fatal motor vehicle accidents involving marijuana, specifically as a result of new legalization measures. They found that as a whole, the numbers of fatal accidents involving marijuana use as grown exponentially in states after new legalization measures have been passed.

Al Crancer, a researcher for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, has published numerous studies involving the impact of marijuana use on drivers, the first of which was conducted in 1969. Many of his papers focus on the role of marijuana usage in fatal motor vehicle crashes across the U.S.

In a paper reflecting on driver fatalities in 2014, Crancer states, “The growing legalization of marijuana for recreational use, along with the present Medical Marijuana use will cause a tidal wave of motor vehicle fatalities and injuries.  This has already happened in Washington State where the level of drivers with marijuana is almost equal to the level of drivers DUI, the No.1 preventable traffic safety problem.”

Since 2006, pot has been the leading drug, after alcohol, found in US motor vehicle fatalities.  According to Al, in 2014, 19% of the drivers in California (a medical marijuana state since 1996) used marijuana compared to only 12% in 2010, up 52% in 5 years.  Over the last 5 years, the number of drivers involved in fatal accidents in Washington and Colorado increased by almost 78% and 60%, respectively. The last two years, during which recreational marijuana use was legal, saw some of the largest increases in these percentages. For example, in Washington and Alaska, data shows a 31% increase per year in the rates of fatal crashes involving marijuana.

Conversely, the numbers of drivers involved in fatal accidents with alcohol in their systems is not increasing nearly as dramatically. Studies have found that the rates of marijuana-impaired drivers in these states are growing at a much faster pace than crashes involving alcohol.

Lastly, when comparing medical marijuana and no legal marijuana states for percentage of drivers in fatal crashes known to have marijuana in their system.  Medical Marijuana states had 29% higher incidence of fatal drivers. According to the NHTSA’s 2014 Passenger Vehicle and Light Trucks Data, states that allowed medical marijuana reported that 17.82% of their fatal vehicle crash drivers were under the influence of marijuana as opposed to 13.87% of drivers in states that did not allow legal marijuana.

Many states that have legalized medical marijuana are avoiding the legal issues of having physicians prescribe marijuana by instead allowing them to “recommend” marijuana. One of the main problems with this situation, however, is that most states have non-medical personnel peddling marijuana without complete and proper warnings. Proper warnings would be attached to the containers as required by FDA-approved pharmaceuticals and would include information such as not operating heavy machinery or automobiles following use. The lack of proper education and warnings regarding these hazards or use places the entire public at risk due to the increased prevalence of drivers under the influence of marijuana being on the roadways.

Has medical marijuana caused any issues in your business? Have any of your employees claimed to be using medical marijuana at work?