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Abstract
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Healthcare providers, mental health specialists, and law enforcement throughout the country are all dealing with an unexplained surge in mental health problems and violence. Unfortunately, there has not previously been a clearly identified cause, but perhaps now we are beginning to gain some focus.
It is increasingly common to hear emergency department or hospital reports that a given patient has had a new suicide attempt, new or recurrent psychotic episode, or some version of violent behavior. If a urine toxicology can be obtained, it seems that a positive cannabinoid screen may be dismissed as "just pot." Healthcare providers incorrectly presume that the patient "must have tangled with" PCP, LSD, Methamphetamines, K-2 or the like. I advance the notion that marijuana plays a central role in the surge of psychiatric issues that are being witnessed, and this is either being recklessly overlooked, or intentionally ignored. As I proposed in 2003 (1) along with other drug policy leaders, Medical Excuse Marijuana was, and still is, a Pandora's box that has been opened.
The evidence is now mounting that the occurrence of cannabis use disorders and marijuana use differs between the states that have adopted "medical" marijuana legislation and those that have not (2).
Drs. Miller and Oberbarnscheidt (3) have graciously agreed to our reprint of their recent article on the potential connection between marijuana and violence. They have examined the potential connection between several of the high-profile acts of violence and marijuana use. I would take one step further in suggesting that law enforcement and mental health professionals are seeing this played out daily, but may not recognize the connection. The additional phenomenon that has not been clearly understood is the surge in narcotic overdoses and overdose deaths. While data is not always available, marijuana use that preceded narcotic abuse and overdose may be the common denominator. For instance, heroin overdose rates in Colorado were fairly constant until 2011, and they tripled between 2011 and 2015 as marijuana became legal for medical uses and was ultimately legalized for recreational use.
What are the implications for policy makers along with healthcare leaders?...
Language: en |