D.

Scott Dibble Minnesota Senate

Senator Minnesota Senate Building, Room 2213
95 W University Ave
St. Paul, Minnesota 55155
District 61
South, Southwest, Downtown 651-296-4191
tinyurl.com/senatordibbleemail
Minneapolis www.senate.mn/senatordibble

MEMORANDUM

December 18, 2017

TO: Members of the Opioid Prescribing Work Group

CC: Commissioner Emily Piper, Minnesota Department of Human Services

Commissioner Ed Ehlinger, Minnesota Department of Health

FROM: Senator D. Scott Dibble

RE: Comments on the Draft Opioid Prescribing Recommendations

Thank you for your diligent work and thoughtful guidance to help Minnesotans grapple
with the epidemic of opioid misuse, overuse and the tragic spike in overdose deaths in
Minnesota. The recommendations are an important first step in the appropriate and safe
use of opioids and in better treatment of acute and chronic pain in our state.

I am pleased to see that the Work Group recognizes medical cannabis in Part I, Section C,
Non-Opioid and Non-Pharmacologic Treatment Modalities, on page 28 of the Draft
Recommendations. Medical cannabis can be used as a potential supplement or alternative
to opioid pain medications for Minnesotans experiencing chronic painbe it from an
underlying condition such as multiple sclerosis or cancer, or from intractable pain.

I would encourage the Work Group to bolster the section and include further information
to clinicians and patients on the potential of medical cannabis to effectively treat pain,
reduce or eliminate the use of opioids for this purpose, and to reduce the number of
opioid overdose deaths in Minnesota.

Doctors, physician assistants, and advanced practice registered nurses do not prescribe
medical cannabis per se. However, Minnesota law puts those health care practitioners in
the drivers seat with respect to whether or not an individual will have access to medical
cannabis. Should they opt to not participate in Minnesotas program for whatever reason,
be prohibited by their employer, or decline to certify that an individual has a qualifying
condition, that option is unavailable to their patients. Further, it would be important for a
patients primary provider to be conversant with the subject to help that individual
explore their options and provide the optimal ongoing care. It is also necessary in order to
have a productive relationship with the pharmacists employed by medical cannabis
manufacturers/distributors who are tasked with working closely with patients in finding
the appropriate formulations for their symptoms and conditions.

While more population-based studies on the efficacy of various forms of medical

cannabis in treating pain, and in its utility in reducing opioid dependence and overdose
deaths, are needed, there is much promising and growing body of evidence that should
not be given short shrift. I have attached a few scholarly research and literature overview
articles that speak to this point.

Please consider this quote from an accompanying commentary in the issue of the Journal
of the American Medical Association in which the following Bachhuber study was
published. The striking implication is that medical marijuana laws, when implemented,
may represent a promising approach for stemming runaway rates of nonintentional opioid
analgesic-related deaths. If true, this finding upsets the applecart of conventional wisdom
regarding the public health implications of marijuana legalization and medical
usefulness.

Livingstone MD, et al. Recreational cannabis legislation and opioid-related deaths

in Colorado, 2000-2015. American Journal of Public Health. 2017; 107:1827.

This analysis examined the reduction in opioid-related deaths in Colorado, where

cannabis is also legal for recreational use. Minnesota is a medical-use only state. This is
not to suggest that this is the forum to discuss lifting cannabis use restrictions beyond
medical necessity, but rather to call attention to the findings and conclusions of the study
that the reduction represents a reversal of the upward trends in opioid-related deaths in
Colorado from the time prior to legalization. It is warranted to consider that with greater
ease in obtaining cannabis, Minnesota could more effectively and safely treat pain and
further reduce opioid dependency and overdose deaths. Under Minnesotas law,
healthcare providers are the gatekeeper on patients access to medical cannabis. Greater
ease in obtaining could result from more resources and education for health care
professionals who might feel uninformed or hesitant to consider their patients use of
medical cannabis.

Bachhuber MA, et al. Medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose
mortality in the United States, 19992010. JAMA Internal Medicine. 2014; 170:1668.

This is a very wide ranging and comprehensive study on reduction of opioid-related

deaths in states with medical cannabis laws to date. The study finds a 28.4 percent
reduction in opioid overdose mortality compared to states without medical cannabis laws.
Its conclusion states, Medical cannabis laws are associated with significantly lower
state-level opioid overdose mortality rates.
Lucas P. Rationale for cannabis-based interventions in the opioid overdose crisis.
Harm Reduction Journal. 2017; 14:58.
and
Lucas P. Cannabis as an adjunct to or substitute for opiates in the treatment of
chronic pain. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs. 2012; 44:125.

These articles examine a growing body of evidence that cannabis can be effective as a
substitute, or alongside opioids in treating pain, reporting on findings that show, When
used in conjunction with opiates, cannabinoids lead to a greater cumulative relief of pain,
resulting in a reduction in the use of opiates (and associated side-effects) by patients in a
clinical setting. Additionally, cannabinoids can prevent the development of tolerance to
and withdrawal from opiates, and can even rekindle opiate analgesia after a prior dosage
has become ineffective. The papers also argue, Observational and epidemiological
studies have found that medical cannabis programs are associated with a reduction in the
use of opioids and associated morbidity and mortality, and urge, health care providers,
and academic researchers to consider the implementation and assessment of cannabis-
based interventions in the opioid crisis.

Returning to the draft report, the discussion on pages 26 and 27 about alternatives to
opioids (non-opioid analgesics, non-pharmacological therapy, pain education, multi-
disciplinary pain management) all hold greater promise for better treatment experience
and outcomes than the brief two pages devoted to these subjects would indicate. Further,
the very light treatment of all of these topics in the document sends a tacit message that
they are options and can be overlooked or not taken very seriously. Understanding that
specific recommendations are outside the scope of the DHS Opioid Prescribing
Improvement Program, it would still be important and appropriate to strengthen the
emphasis on the opportunity these alternatives to opioids represent.

The Opioid Prescribing Guidelines may well prove to be an essential resource for
thousands of Minnesotans, and those who care for them, in a desperate search for a path
to escape the opioid crisis were in. It might be the most effective counterweight to years
of public policy and corporate influence that has gotten us to this point. It would be a
shame to miss this opportunity to more fully explore and convey that medical cannabis is
showing to be a safe, effective and prudent alternative for many people. We already know
their very real suffering is only exacerbated by the desperation, and too often tragedy,
that opioids, when used inappropriately, offer.
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Author manuscript
JAMA Intern Med. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2015 October 01.
Author Manuscript

Published in final edited form as:

JAMA Intern Med. 2014 October ; 174(10): 16681673. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.4005.

Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Analgesic Overdose

Mortality in the United States, 19992010
Marcus A. Bachhuber, MD, Brendan Saloner, PhD, Chinazo O. Cunningham, MD, MS, and
Colleen L. Barry, PhD, MPP
Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Bachhuber); Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars
Author Manuscript

Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (Bachhuber); Leonard Davis Institute of Health

Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (Bachhuber, Saloner, Barry); Robert Wood
Johnson Health and Society Scholars Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
(Saloner); Division of General Internal Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein
College of Medicine, Bronx, New York (Cunningham); Department of Health Policy and
Management, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland (Barry)

Abstract
IMPORTANCEOpioid analgesic overdose mortality continues to rise in the United States,
driven by increases in prescribing for chronic pain. Because chronic pain is a major indication for
medical cannabis, laws that establish access to medical cannabis may change overdose mortality
related to opioid analgesics in states that have enacted them.
Author Manuscript

OBJECTIVETo determine the association between the presence of state medical cannabis laws
and opioid analgesic overdose mortality.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSA time-series analysis was conducted of

medical cannabis laws and state-level death certificate data in the United States from 1999 to
2010; all 50 states were included.

EXPOSURESPresence of a law establishing a medical cannabis program in the state.

Copyright 2014 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.

Corresponding Author: Marcus A. Bachhuber, MD, Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, Philadelphia Veterans Affairs
Medical Center, 423 Guardian Dr, 1303-A Blockley Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (marcus.bachhuber@gmail.com).
Author Manuscript

Author Contributions: Dr Bachhuber had full access to all the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data
and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Study concept and design: Bachhuber, Saloner, Barry.
Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data: Bachhuber, Cunningham, Barry.
Drafting of the manuscript: Bachhuber, Saloner.
Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: All authors.
Statistical analysis: Bachhuber, Saloner, Barry.
Study supervision: Cunningham, Barry.
Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Cunninghams husband was recently employed by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals and is currently
employed by Quest Diagnostics. No other disclosures are reported.
Disclaimer: The findings and conclusions of this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of
the Department of Veterans Affairs or the US government.
Correction: This article was corrected on August 27, 2014, to fix a typographical error in Figure 1 and on September 10, 2014, to fix
an incorrect term in the Discussion.
 Bachhuber et al. Page 2

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESAge-adjusted opioid analgesic overdose death rate

Author Manuscript

per 100 000 population in each state. Regression models were developed including state and year
fixed effects, the presence of 3 different policies regarding opioid analgesics, and the state-specific
unemployment rate.

RESULTSThree states (California, Oregon, and Washington) had medical cannabis laws
effective prior to 1999. Ten states (Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana,
Nevada, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Vermont) enacted medical cannabis laws between 1999
and 2010. States with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8% lower mean annual opioid overdose
mortality rate (95% CI, 37.5% to 9.5%; P = .003) compared with states without medical
cannabis laws. Examination of the association between medical cannabis laws and opioid
analgesic overdose mortality in each year after implementation of the law showed that such laws
were associated with a lower rate of overdose mortality that generally strengthened over time: year
1 (19.9%; 95% CI, 30.6% to 7.7%; P = .002), year 2 (25.2%; 95% CI, 40.6% to 5.9%; P
Author Manuscript

= .01), year 3 (23.6%; 95% CI, 41.1% to 1.0%; P = .04), year 4 (20.2%; 95% CI, 33.6% to
4.0%; P = .02), year 5 (33.7%; 95% CI, 50.9% to 10.4%; P = .008), and year 6 (33.3%;
95% CI, 44.7% to 19.6%; P < .001). In secondary analyses, the findings remained similar.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEMedical cannabis laws are associated with significantly

lower state-level opioid overdose mortality rates. Further investigation is required to determine
how medical cannabis laws may interact with policies aimed at preventing opioid analgesic
overdose.

Chronic noncancer pain is common in the United States,1 and the proportion of patients with
noncancer pain who receive prescriptions for opioids has almost doubled over the past
decade.2 In parallel to this increase in prescriptions, rates of opioid use disorders and
overdose deaths have risen dramatically.3,4 Policies such as prescription drug monitoring
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programs, increased scrutiny of patients and providers, and enhanced access to substance
abuse treatment have been advocated to reduce the risk of opioid analgesics5; however,
relatively less attention has focused on how the availability of alternative nonopioid
treatments may affect overdose rates.

As of July 2014, a total of 23 states have enacted laws establishing medical cannabis
programs6 and chronic or severe pain is the primary indication in most states.710 Medical
cannabis laws are associated with increased cannabis use among adults.11 This increased
access to medical cannabis may reduce opioid analgesic use by patients with chronic pain,
and therefore reduce opioid analgesic overdoses. Alternatively, if cannabis adversely alters
the pharmacokinetics of opioids or serves as a gateway or stepping stone leading to
further substance use,1214 medical cannabis laws may increase opioid analgesic overdoses.
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Given these potential effects, we examined the relationship between implementation of state
medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose deaths in the United States between
1999 and 2010.

Methods
The opioid analgesic overdose mortality rate in each state from 1999 to 2010 was abstracted
using the Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research interface to multiple cause-

JAMA Intern Med. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2015 October 01.
 Bachhuber et al. Page 3

of-death data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.15 We defined opioid
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analgesic overdose deaths as fatal drug overdoses of any intent (International Statistical
Classification of Diseases, 10th revision [ICD-10], codes X40-X44, X60-X64, and Y10-
Y14) where an opioid analgesic was also coded (T40.2-T40.4). This captures all overdose
deaths where an opioid analgesic was involved including those involving polypharmacy or
illicit drug use (eg, heroin). Analysis of publicly available secondary data is considered
exempt by the University of Pennsylvania Institutional Review Board.

Three states (California, Oregon, and Washington) had medical cannabis laws effective prior
to 1999.6 Ten states (Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New
Mexico, Rhode Island, and Vermont) implemented medical cannabis laws between 1999 and
2010. Nine states(Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts,
Minnesota, New Hampshire, and New York) had medical cannabis laws effective after
2010, which is beyond the study period. New Jerseys medical cannabis law went into effect
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in the last quarter of 2010 and was counted as effective after the study period. In each year,
we first plotted the mean age-adjusted opioid analgesic overdose mortality rate in states that
had a medical cannabis law vs states that did not.

Next, we determined the association between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic
related deaths using linear time-series regression models. For the dependent variable, we
used the logarithm of the year- and state-specific age-adjusted opioid analgesic overdose
mortality rate. Our main independent variable of interest was the presence of medical
cannabis laws, which we modeled in 2 ways.

In our first regression model, we included an indicator for the presence of a medical
cannabis law in the state and year. All years prior to a medical cannabis law were coded as 0
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and all years after the year of passage were coded as 1. Because laws could be implemented
at various points in the year, we coded the law as a fraction for years of implementation (eg,
0.5 for a law that was implemented on July 1). The coefficient on this variable therefore
represents the mean difference, expressed as a percentage, in the annual opioid analgesic
overdose mortality rate associated with the implementation of medical cannabis laws. To
estimate the absolute difference in mortality associated with medical cannabis laws in 2010,
we calculated the expected number of opioid analgesic overdose deaths in medical cannabis
states had laws not been present and subtracted the actual number of overdose deaths
recorded.

In our second model, we allowed the effect of medical cannabis laws to vary depending on
the time elapsed since enactment, because states may have experienced delays in patient
registration, distribution of identification cards, and establishment of dispensaries, if
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applicable. Accordingly, we coded years with no law present as 0, but included separate
coefficients to measure each year since implementation of the medical cannabis law for
states that adopted such laws. States that implemented medical cannabis laws before the
study period were coded similarly (eg, in 1999, California was coded as 3 because the law
was implemented in 1996). This model provides separate estimates for 1 year after
implementation, 2 years after implementation, and so forth.

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 Bachhuber et al. Page 4

Each model adjusted for state and year (fixed effects). We also included 4 time-varying
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state-level factors: (1) the presence of a state-level prescription drug monitoring program (a
state-level registry containing information on controlled substances prescribed in a state),16
(2) the presence of a law requiring or allowing a pharmacist to request patient identification
before dispensing medications,17 (3) the presence of regulations establishing increased state
oversight of pain management clinics,18 and (4) state- and year-specific unemployment rates
to adjust for the economic climate.19 Colinearity among independent variables was assessed
by examining variance inflation factors; no evidence of colinearity was found. For all
models, robust standard errors were calculated using procedures to account for correlation
within states over time.

To assess the robustness of our results, we performed several further analyses. First, we
excluded intentional opioid analgesic overdose deaths from the age-adjusted overdose
mortality rate to focus exclusively on nonsuicide deaths. Second, because heroin and
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prescription opioid use are interrelated for some individuals,2023 we included overdose
deaths related to heroin, even if no opioid analgesic was coded. Third, we assessed the
robustness of our findings to the inclusion of state-specific linear time trends that can be
used to adjust for differential factors that changed linearly over the study period (eg, hard-to-
measure attitudes or cultural changes). Fourth, we tested whether trends in opioid analgesic
overdose mortality predated the implementation of medical cannabis laws by including
indicator variables in a separate regression model for the 2 years before the passage of the
law.24 Finally, to test the specificity of any association found between medical cannabis
laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality, we examined the association between state
medical cannabis laws and age-adjusted death rates of other medical conditions without
strong links to cannabis use: heart disease (ICD-10 codes I00-I09, I11, I13, and I20-I51)25
and septicemia (A40-A41). All analyses were performed using SAS, version 9.3 (SAS
Author Manuscript

Institute Inc).

Results
The mean age-adjusted opioid analgesic overdose mortality rate increased in states with and
without medical cannabis laws during the study period (Figure 1). Throughout the study
period, states with medical cannabis laws had a higher opioid analgesic overdose mortality
rate and the rates rose for both groups; however, between 2009 and 2010 the rate in states
with medical cannabis laws appeared to plateau.

In the adjusted model, medical cannabis laws were associated with a mean 24.8% lower
annual rate of opioid analgesic overdose deaths (95% CI, 37.5% to 9.5%; P = .003)
(Table), compared with states without laws. In 2010, this translated to an estimated 1729
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(95% CI, 549 to 3151) fewer deaths than expected. Medical cannabis laws were associated
with lower rates of opioid analgesic overdose mortality, which generally strengthened in the
years after passage (Figure 2): year 1 (19.9%; 95% CI, 30.6% to 7.7%; P = .002), year 2
(25.2%; 95% CI, 40.6% to 5.9%; P = .01), year 3 (23.6%; 95% CI, 41.1% to 1.0%;
P = .04), year 4 (20.2%; 95% CI, 33.6% to 4.0%; P = .02), year 5 (33.7%; 95% CI,
50.9% to 10.4%; P = .008), and year 6 (33.3%; 95% CI, 44.7% to 19.6%; P < .001).

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 Bachhuber et al. Page 5

The other opioid analgesic policies, as well as state unemployment rates, were not
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significantly associated with opioid analgesic mortality rates.

In additional analyses, the association between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic
mortality rates was similar after excluding intentional deaths (ie, suicide) and when
including all heroin overdose deaths, even if an opioid analgesic was not involved (Table).
Including state-specific linear time trends in the model resulted in a borderline significant
association between laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality (17.9%;95% CI, 32.7%
to 0.3%; P = .054). When examining the years prior to law implementation, we did not find
an association between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality 2
years prior to law implementation (13.1%; 95% CI, 45.5% to 38.6%; P = .56) or 1 year
prior (1.2%; 95% CI, 41.2% to 74.0%; P = .97). Finally, we did not find significant
associations between medical cannabis laws and mortality associated with heart disease
(1.4%;95%CI, 0.2%to 2.9%; P = .09) or septicemia (1.8%; 95% CI, 7.6% to 4.3%; P = .
Author Manuscript

55).

Discussion
In an analysis of death certificate data from 1999 to 2010, we found that states with medical
cannabis laws had lower mean opioid analgesic overdose mortality rates compared with
states without such laws. This finding persisted when excluding intentional overdose deaths
(ie, suicide), suggesting that medical cannabis laws are associated with lower opioid
analgesic overdose mortality among individuals using opioid analgesics for medical
indications. Similarly, the association between medical cannabis laws and lower opioid
analgesic overdose mortality rates persisted when including all deaths related to heroin, even
if no opioid analgesic was present, indicating that lower rates of opioid analgesic overdose
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mortality were not offset by higher rates of heroin overdose mortality. Although the exact
mechanism is unclear, our results suggest a link between medical cannabis laws and lower
opioid analgesic overdose mortality.

Approximately 60% of all opioid analgesic overdoses occur among patients who have
legitimate prescriptions from a single provider.26 This group may be sensitive to medical
cannabis laws; patients with chronic noncancer pain who would have otherwise initiated
opioid analgesics may choose medical cannabis instead. Although evidence for the analgesic
properties of cannabis is limited, it may provide analgesia for some individuals.27,28 In
addition, patients already receiving opioid analgesics who start medical cannabis treatment
may experience improved analgesia and decrease their opioid dose,29,30 thus potentially
decreasing their dose-dependent risk of overdose.31,32 Finally, if medical cannabis laws lead
to decreases in polypharmacyparticularly with benzodiazepinesin people taking opioid
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analgesics, overdose risk would be decreased. Further analyses examining the association
between medical cannabis laws and patterns of opioid analgesic use and polypharmacy in
the population as a whole and across different groups are needed.

A connection between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality
among individuals who misuse or abuse opioids is less clear. Previous laboratory work has
shown that cannabinoids act at least in part through an opioid receptor mechanism33,34 and

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 Bachhuber et al. Page 6

that they increase dopamine concentrations in the nucleus accumbens in a fashion similar to
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that of heroin and several other drugs with abuse potential.33,35 Clinically, cannabis use is
associated with modest reductions in opioid withdrawal symptoms for some people,36,37 and
therefore may reduce opioid use. In contrast, cannabis use has been linked with increased
use of other drugs, including opioids14,3840; however, a causal relationship has not been
established.14,41 Increased access to cannabis through medical cannabis laws could
influence opioid misuse in either direction, and further study is required.

Although the mean annual opioid analgesic overdose mortality rate was lower in states with
medical cannabis laws compared with states without such laws, the findings of our
secondary analyses deserve further consideration. State-specific characteristics, such as
trends in attitudes or health behaviors, may explain variation in medical cannabis laws and
opioid analgesic overdose mortality, and we found some evidence that differences in these
characteristics contributed to our findings. When including state-specific linear time trends
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in regression models, which are used to adjust for hard-to-measure confounders that change
over time, the association between laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality weakened.
In contrast, we did not find evidence that states that passed medical cannabis laws had
different overdose mortality rates in years prior to law passage, providing a temporal link
between laws and changes in opioid analgesic overdose mortality. In addition, we did not
find evidence that laws were associated with differences in mortality rates for unrelated
conditions (heart disease and septicemia), suggesting that differences in opioid analgesic
overdose mortality cannot be explained by broader changes in health. In summary, although
we found a lower mean annual rate of opioid analgesic mortality in states with medical
cannabis laws, a direct causal link cannot be established.

This study has several limitations. First, this analysis is ecologic and cannot adjust for
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characteristics of individuals within the states, such as socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity,

or medical and psychiatric diagnoses. Although we found that the association between
medical cannabis laws and lower opioid overdose mortality strengthened in the years after
implementation, this could represent heterogeneity between states that passed laws earlier in
the study period vs those that passed the laws later. Second, death certificate data may not
correctly classify cases of opioid analgesic overdose deaths, and reporting of opioid
analgesics on death certificates may differ among states; misclassification could bias our
results in either direction. Third, although fixed-effects models can adjust for time-invariant
characteristics of each state and state-invariant time effects, there may be important time-
and state-varying confounders not included in our models. Finally, our findings apply to
states that passed medical cannabis laws during the study period and the association between
future laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality may differ.
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Conclusions
Although the present study provides evidence that medical cannabis laws are associated with
reductions in opioid analgesic overdose mortality on a population level, proposed
mechanisms for this association are speculative and rely on indirect evidence. Further
rigorous evaluation of medical cannabis policies, including provisions that vary among
states,14,42 is required before their wide adoption can be recommended. If the relationship

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 Bachhuber et al. Page 7

between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality is substantiated in
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further work, enactment of laws to allow for use of medical cannabis may be advocated as
part of a comprehensive package of policies to reduce the population risk of opioid
analgesics.

Acknowledgments
Funding/Support: This work was funded by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants R01DA032110 and
R25DA023021 and the Center for AIDS Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore
Medical Center grant NIH AI-51519. Dr Saloner received funding support from the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation Health and Society Scholars Program. Dr Bachhuber received funding support from the Philadelphia
Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program.

Role of the Sponsor: The sponsors had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management,
analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit
the manuscript for publication.
Author Manuscript

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Figure 1. Mean Age-Adjusted Opioid Analgesic Overdose Death Rate

States with medical cannabis laws compared with states without such laws in the United
States, 19992010.
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 Bachhuber et al. Page 11
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Figure 2. Association Between Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Analgesic Overdose
Mortality in Each Year After Implementation of Laws in the United States, 19992010
Point estimate of the mean difference in the opioid analgesic overdose mortality rate in
states with medical cannabis laws compared with states without such laws; whiskers indicate
95% CIs.
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 Bachhuber et al. Page 12

Table 1

Association Between Medical Cannabis Laws and State-Level Opioid Analgesic Overdose Mortality Rates in
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the United States, 19992010

Percentage Difference in Age-Adjusted Opioid Analgesic Overdose Mortality in States With vs

Without a Law

Primary Analysis Secondary Analyses

Independent Variablea Estimate (95% CI)b Estimate (95% CI)c Estimate (95% CI)d
Medical cannabis law 24.8 (37.5 to 9.5)e 31.0 (42.2 to 17.6)f 23.1 (37.1 to 5.9)e

Prescription drug monitoring 3.7 (12.7 to 23.3) 3.5 (13.4 to 23.7) 7.7 (11.0 to 30.3)
program

Law requiring or allowing 5.0 (10.4 to 23.1) 4.1 (11.4 to 22.5) 2.3 (15.4 to 23.7)
pharmacists to request patient
identification
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Increased state oversight of pain 7.6 (19.1 to 5.6) 11.7 (20.7 to 1.7)e 3.9 (21.7 to 18.0)
management clinics

Annual state unemployment rateg 4.4 (0.3 to 9.3) 5.2 (0.1 to 10.6)e 2.5 (2.3 to 7.5)

a
All models adjusted for state and year (fixed effects).
b 2
R = 0.876.
c
All intentional (suicide) overdose deaths were excluded from the dependent variable; opioid analgesic overdose mortality is therefore deaths that
are unintentional or of undetermined intent. All covariates were the same as in the primary analysis; R2 = 0.873.
d
Findings include all heroin overdose deaths, even if no opioid analgesic was involved. All covariates were the same as in the primary analysis. R2
= 0.842.
e
P .05.
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f
P .001.
g
An association was calculated for a 1-percentage-point increase in the state unemployment rate.
Author Manuscript

JAMA Intern Med. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2015 October 01.
 Providedbythe
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Lucas Harm Reduction Journal (2017) 14:58
DOI 10.1186/s12954-017-0183-9

COMMENTARY Open Access

Rationale for cannabis-based interventions

in the opioid overdose crisis
Philippe Lucas1,2,3

Abstract
Background: North America is currently in the grips of a crisis rooted in the use of licit and illicit opioid-based
analgesics. Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in Canada and the US, and the growing toll of
opioid-related morbidity and mortality requires a diversity of novel therapeutic and harm reduction-based
interventions. Research suggests that increasing adult access to both medical and recreational cannabis has
significant positive impacts on public health and safety as a result of substitution effect. Observational and
epidemiological studies have found that medical cannabis programs are associated with a reduction in the use of
opioids and associated morbidity and mortality.
Aims and Methods: This paper presents an evidence-based rationale for cannabis-based interventions in the
opioid overdose crisis informed by research on substitution effect, proposing three important windows of
opportunity for cannabis for therapeutic purposes (CTP) to play a role in reducing opioid use and interrupting the
cycle towards opioid use disorder: 1) prior to opioid introduction in the treatment of chronic pain; 2) as an opioid
reduction strategy for those patients already using opioids; and 3) as an adjunct therapy to methadone or
suboxone treatment in order to increase treatment success rates. The commentary explores potential
obstacles and limitations to these proposed interventions, and as well as strategies to monitor their impact
on public health and safety.
Conclusion: The growing body of research supporting the medical use of cannabis as an adjunct or
substitute for opioids creates an evidence-based rationale for governments, health care providers, and
academic researchers to consider the implementation and assessment of cannabis-based interventions in the
opioid crisis.
Keywords: Addiction, Opioids, Cannabis, Marijuana, Substitution, Harm reduction

Background health-based efforts such as the opening of emergency

North America is currently in the grips of a crisis rooted overdose prevention sites in many high-use jurisdictions,
in the use of licit and illicit opioid-based analgesics. use and overdose rates continue to rise. On April 26th
Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in British Columbia reported 130 opioid-related overdoses
Canada and the US, with many of these deaths amongst emergency calls in a single day,1 and in March 2017, 120
people affected by opioid use disorder. In 2015, there individuals died of drug overdoses.2 In light of the growing
were 52,404 drug overdose deaths in the US, including toll of opioid-based morbidity and mortality, this crisis
33,091 (63.1%) overdose deaths related to opioids [1]. In requires a diversity of novel therapeutic and harm
British Columbia, despite the declaration of a public reduction-based interventions, and evidence suggests
health emergency in 2016 and the scale-up of public cannabis may have a role to play in reducing some of
these harms.
Correspondence: plucas@uvic.ca
1
Graduate Researcher, Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia, Substitution effect
2300 McKenzie Ave, Victoria, BC V8N 5M8, Canada Substitution effect is a theory originating from behav-
2
Social Dimensions of Health, University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Rd, Victoria,
BC V8P 5C2, Canada ioral economics that examines how the availability of
Full list of author information is available at the end of the article one good can impact and influence the use of other
The Author(s). 2017 Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to
the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver
(http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Lucas Harm Reduction Journal (2017) 14:58
goods. In regards to substance use, Hursh et al. (2005)
suggest that pharmacological therapies for the treat-
ment of drug abuse can also be conceptualized as alter-
native commodities that either substitute for illicit drug
use (e.g., agonist therapy) or reduce the potency of illicit
drugs directly (e.g., narcotic antagonist therapy) [2].
Common examples of such harm reduction-focused sub-
stitution effect include the use of e-cigs or nicotine
patches as alternatives to cigarettes, or methadone/sub-
oxone treatment as an alternative to heroin. This paper
presents an evidence-based rationale for cannabis-based
interventions in the opioid overdose crisis informed by
research on substitution effect and the principles of harm
reduction.
There is a growing amount of evidence that increasing
adult access to both medical and recreational cannabis has
significant positive impacts on public health and safety,
largely as a result of substitution effect. Population-level
research describes how the introduction of regimes for
legal access to cannabis (e.g., medical and/or recreational)
in some US states has preceded reductions in homicides
and violent crime [3], suicides [4], and automobile-related
fatalities [57], all potentially related to subsequent
declines in alcohol use. Additionally, epidemiological
research has found that medical cannabis programs are
associated with a reduction in the use of opioids and asso-
ciated morbidity and mortality. Bachhuber et al. [8] report
that U.S. states with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8%
lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate com-
pared to states without medical cannabis laws, and a 2016
study found that the number of Medicare prescriptions to
seniors in medical cannabis states dropped for drugs that
treat pain, depression, anxiety, nausea, psychoses, seizures
and sleep disorders [9]. For pain, the annual number of
annual doses prescribed per physician fell by 1826 doses.
More recently, a retrospective survey of Michigan patients
concluded that medical cannabis use was associated with
a 64% decrease in opioid use (n = 118), decreased side ef-
fects of medications, and an improved quality of life [10],
and a large survey of 2897 medical cannabis patients in
California found that 30% of the sample (n = 841) re-
ported using opioid-based pain medications, 97% of which
strongly agreed/agreed that they were able to decrease
their opioid use when using medical cannabis [11].
A 2015 cross sectional survey of patients in Canadas
national medical cannabis system found that 63% of
respondents reported substituting cannabis for prescrip-
tion drugs (n = 166), with 32% of the pharmaceuticals
being substituted for being prescription opioids (n = 80).
The primary reasons cited by patients for this substitution
were less adverse side effect (39%, n = 68); cannabis is at improving public health and safety outcomes, with a
safer (27%, n = 48), and better symptom management focus on the 3 primary opportunities for cannabis to
(16%, n = 28) [12]. This evidence is consistent with infor-
mation from Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) showing that
Page 2 of 6
a recent significant increase in the use of medical cannabis
by Canadian veterans was paralleled by a reduction of
approximately 30% in the number of prescriptions for
benzodiazepines, and a 16% decrease in the use of
opioids [13].
Research suggests that there are multiple mechanisms
of action that may result in the substitution of cannabis
for opioids. In a study of cannabinoid-opioid interactions,
Abrams et al. (2011) note that cannabinoids and opioids
share many similar therapeutic and pharmacodynamics
properties, including analgesic effects; the potential to in-
duce hypothermia, sedation, and hypotension; as well as
inhibition of intestinal motility and locomotor activity
[14], adding that
Synergy in analgesic effects between opioids and
cannabinoids has been demonstrated in animal
models. The antinociceptive effects of morphine are
mediated predominantly by mu opioid receptors but
may be enhanced by delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol
(THC) activation of kappa and delta opiate
receptors [15]. It has further been suggested that
the cannabinoidopioid interaction may occur at
the level of their signal transduction mechanisms
[16, 17]. Receptors for both classes of drugs are
coupled to similar intracellular signaling mechanisms
that lead to a decrease in cyclic adenosine monopho-
sphate production via G protein activation [1719].
There is also some evidence that cannabinoids
increase the synthesis and/or release of endogenous
opioids. (p. 844)
In light of the growing overdose crisis in North America,
these findings on cannabis substitution effect and the
biological mechanisms behind it strongly suggest that
cannabis could play a role in reducing the public health
impacts of prescription and non-prescription opioids.
However, interventions testing the harm reduction po-
tential of cannabis substitution effect have been lacking
thus far. The following framework describes how novel
cannabis-based interventions could minimize the per-
sonal and social harms associated with opioids.
Methods
A compelling amount of evidence suggests there may be
specific windows of opportunity for cannabis for
therapeutic purposes (CTP) to play a role in the opioid
use and dependence cycle. This commentary synthesizes
the growing amount of research on cannabis substitu-
tion effect into specific policy recommendations aimed
potentially reduce opioid use disorder and associated
morbidity and mortality: 1) prior to opioid introduction
Lucas Harm Reduction Journal (2017) 14:58
in the treatment of chronic pain; 2) as an opioid reduc-
tion strategy for those already using opioids; and 3) as
an adjunct therapy to methadone or Suboxone treatment
in order to increase treatment success rates.
Introduction/initiation
The pathway to opioid use disorder typically begins with
the use of pharmaceutical opioids. Research suggests
that 4 out of 5 heroin users report their opioid use began
with prescription opioids [20]. If physicians and patients
have access to a safer, less addictive alternative for pain
control like cannabis [21], introducing it into the course
of care as a first line treatment could potentially prevent
the opioid overuse cycle from starting by not only
reducing the risk pain patients would have of developing
opioid use disorders, but also by reducing the overall
supply of pharmaceutical opioids on the black market.
Clinical research on cannabis as a treatment for pain
is extensive and suggests a relatively safe and effective
treatment option [14, 2226], and there is significant
population-level evidence that cannabis substitution for
opioids in the treatment of chronic pain is already taking
place throughout North America. Chronic pain is the
most common indication reported by Canadian and US
patients who use medical cannabis [10, 27], and
epidemiological studies by Bachhuber et al. [8] and
Bradford and Bradford [9] strongly suggest that access
to medical cannabis through state-level programs in the
US reduces opioid use and related harms.
In light of this data, it would seem logical to seek to
develop policies and associated education strategies to
increase physician support for CTP in the treatment of
chronic pain, and thereby reduce the health care
provider communitys dependence on opioids as first or
second line treatments options. However, while opioids
remain second line treatment options throughout North
America, clinical guidelines in Canada designate canna-
bis a third or fourth line treatment option for pain, and
in the US, federal prohibition on the medical use of can-
nabis means that in many states, this is not an available
treatment option under any circumstance.
It has become apparent that Canadian clinical guide-
lines and the USs national prohibitionist policies are no
longer reflective of the most current evidence and best
available science on cannabis, opioids, and the treatment
of chronic pain, and may in fact be inadvertently con-
tributing to the growing rate of opioid use disorder. The
growing body of research on the impact of cannabis on
the use of other, potentially more dangerous substances
creates a strong rationale to review these policies
through a public health centered lens informed by the
ongoing and increasing detrimental impacts of the
current opioid crisis.
Page 3 of 6
The argument in favor of recognizing medical canna-
bis as a first line option in the treatment of chronic pain
is informed by science, common sense, and simple
compassion: if patients never start using opioids, there is
no risk their use might progress to dependence or
overdose.
Reduction/substitution
For those patients that are already using opioids in their
course of care, the therapeutic imperative is to ensure
treatment success without a progression to dependence
and/or overuse. Evidence suggests that cannabis can be
a useful adjunct therapy in meeting these goals. Cannabis
augments the pain relieving potential of opioids [14], and
can re-potentiate their effects [28], thereby reducing the
need to increase the dosage of opioid pain medications.
As noted earlier, cross-sectional and population-level
research has shown that introducing cannabis into the
treatment of chronic pain may result in a reduction or
complete cessation of opioid use [11, 12, 2933], thereby
significantly reducing the potential for dependence or
overdose. These findings suggest an opportunity to reduce
opioid use through the development of therapeutic guide-
lines to safely introduce medical cannabis as an adjunct
therapy for patients using opioids in the treatment of
chronic pain. The aim of this strategy would be to slowly
introduce cannabis into the continuum of care, while sub-
sequently reducing the dosage and frequency of prescrip-
tion opioid use.
However, here too there are some possible obstacles to
implementation. Many members of the health care com-
munity and their respective organizations have expressed
concerns about the use of medical cannabis, with much
of the focus centering on smoking as a mode of use, and
the impact of cannabis use on potentially vulnerable
populations.
In regards to concerns over smoking as a route of
administration, research suggests those who smoke
cannabis regularly may be at increased risk of bronchial
issues, however no causal link between cannabis use and
lung or upper respiratory cancer has ever been estab-
lished [34]. Encouragingly, recent patient surveys have
found that alternatives to smoking such as vaporization
and edibles are increasingly popular amongst patient
and recreational populations [35, 36], and a 2015 survey
of Canadian medical cannabis patients found that over
50% of patients report non-smoked options as their
primary method of use [12]. Additionally, in Canada the
availability of high quality oil-based extracts (e.g., drops
and capsules) through the federal Access to Cannabis
for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) provides
patients and health care practitioners with legal, stan-
dardized alternatives to smoked ingestion. However, any
cannabis-based medical intervention should be coupled
Lucas Harm Reduction Journal (2017) 14:58
with an educational campaign to discourage smoking
and inform patients and physicians of safer alternative
methods of use.
In regards to vulnerable populations, its certainly true
that due to circumstances or pre-existing medical condi-
tions, so individuals may not be well suited for cannabis-
based therapies. In particular, a recent systematic review
of medical cannabis and mental health suggests that
CTP users with psychotic disorders, and those at in-
creased genetic risk of developing such disorders, should
be cautioned regarding the use of cannabis [37].
However, the same review also noted that medical can-
nabis may be useful in the treatment of post-traumatic
stress disorder (often a co-morbidity with substance use
issues), and that its use is not associated with increased
violence. In fact, a 2014 study found that cannabis use
resulted in reductions in interpersonal violence amongst
married couples [38].
Other potentially vulnerable populations include youth
and women who may be pregnant, and as with many
currently available prescription drugs including
opioids - physicians should carefully weigh the potential
harms and benefits of cannabis treatment when treating
these populations.
Additionally, cannabis that is high in cannabidiol
(CBD) and low in tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) may
reduce potential harms to vulnerable populations. CBD
is a relatively safe, non-impairing cannabinoid that has
been shown to have many therapeutic effects relevant to
the opioid crisis, including the reduction of heroin-
seeking behavior in mice [39], and positive effects on
mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, psych-
osis and bi-polar disorder [37, 40]. In other words, the
existence of vulnerable populations should not result in
abandoning or otherwise withholding this treatment
option from others who might benefit from CTP,
particularly in the treatment of chronic pain. It does
however highlight the need to target outreach and edu-
cation campaigns and specific treatment modalities
aimed at reducing potential cannabis-related harms to
these vulnerable populations.
Replacement/Cessation
When opioid use graduates to dependence, it is impera-
tive that users seeking opioid replacement therapy
(ORT) enjoy the best possible chance of success, and
some research has found that cannabis use can positively
impact treatment success rates. For example, intermit-
tent cannabis users showed superior retention in
naltrexone treatment compared to abstinent or consist-
ent users [41]. Additionally, objective ratings of opioid
withdrawal decreased in patients concurrently using can-
nabis during the early stages of methadone stabilization
Page 4 of 6
[42], and CBD has been shown to reduce heroin seeking
behavior in mice [39].
Greater ORT success rates reduce the risk of those
with opioid use disorder suffering a relapse and subse-
quent fatal overdose, thereby diminishing the health care
and public safety cost burden for all members of society.
Since there is an exceedingly high risk of relapse and
overdose in this dependent population [42, 43] - particu-
larly with introduction of fentanyl and other powerful
opioids into the illicit drug market - systematic research-
based strategies to explore the potential of medical
cannabis to improve ORT success rates should be imple-
mented immediately. In order to address the need for
good longitudinal data on the impact of cannabis-based
medicines on methadone/Suboxone treatment, I have
worked with Dr. Peter Farago to develop a multi-site
cohort study that will compare the success rate of ORT
in 250 cannabis using patients vs. 250 non-cannabis
using controls. The study received ethics approval in
May 2017 and will launch summer/fall 2017.
Patients seeking treatment for opioid use disorder
deserve the best possible chance of success. Since evidence
suggests that cannabis can help reduce opioid cravings and
subsequently improve treatment retention and compliance,
there is a strong rationale to immediately proceed with this
novel intervention and associated studies.
Implementation and assessment
It is notable that many of the favorable cannabis-related
public health outcomes cited in this commentary did
not come about as a result of a deliberate strategy to
substitute cannabis for opioids, but rather through unin-
tentional in situ changes in patient behavior resulting
from cannabis use. This strongly suggests that a more
purposeful and strategic approach to cannabis substitu-
tion for opioids may lead to even more encouraging
outcomes, and Canada may be particularly well posi-
tioned to implement these proposed interventions. With
a long-standing federally regulated medical cannabis
program that currently serves over 150,000 Canadians
with physician support for medical cannabis, and access
to quality-tested medical cannabis products labeled for
THC and CBD content, outreach and education to
health care practitioners touting the three opportunities
for cannabis-based interventions could be accomplished
very quickly, and could thereby have nearly immediate
impacts on opioid use.
Of interest in regards to the assessment and evaluation
of these public policy measures, a number of provinces
have centralized tracking of prescription drug dispensing,
so detailed real-time data on the use of prescription opioids
would be available to measure the population-level impacts
of these interventions. This data could be coupled with
well-designed epidemiological studies tracking overdose
Lucas Harm Reduction Journal (2017) 14:58
rates through first responder calls and emergency room
data, as well as prospective observational cohort studies
comparing methadone/suboxone treatment success rates
in cannabis and non-cannabis using populations.
Observational and epidemiological research would not
replace the need for high quality clinical trials examining
the impact of cannabis on chronic pain, opioid use, and
quality of life. Well-designed clinical trials continue to
be necessary studies to determine the most effective
method of use (inhalation or oral ingestion), optimal
chemical composition (THC and CBD ratios and overall
potency), and associated dosage to most effectively im-
pact opioid use in all 3 of the proposed interventions.
However, the significant public health impact of the
current opioid crisis merits a rapid response strategy,
and Canadas federal Access to Cannabis for Medical
Purposes Regulations and associated supply of cannabis
and cannabis-based medications would allow for rapid
implementation in a responsible and reflexive manner
informed by existing regional, provincial and national
pharmacovigilance and outcome assessment programs.
Conclusion
Bureaucratic, legal and ideological obstacles to these
interventions unquestionably exist in some jurisdictions.
However, t is encouraging to see acknowledgements of the
potential impacts of medical cannabis on opioid use from
traditionally conservative organizations like the National
Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), which recently acknowl-
edged the growing scientific support for substitution effect
on its website, noting that while research into the effects
of cannabis on opioid use in pain patients is limiteddata
suggest that medical cannabis treatment may reduce the
dose of opioids required for pain relief.3
Cannabis alone will not end opioid use disorder and
associated morbidities and mortality. However, the intro-
duction of ever more powerful opioids like fentanyl and
carfentanyl into the illicit drug market and the resulting
day-to-day increase in opioid overdoses highlights the
immediate need for innovative short and long term
intervention strategies to add to current efforts like
ORT, heroin maintenance programs, supervised con-
sumption sites, the depenalization of substance use, and
increased education and outreach on the potential harms
associated with both prescription and illicit opioid use.
The growing body of research supporting the medical
use of cannabis as an adjunct or substitute for opioids
creates an evidence-based rationale for governments,
health care providers, and academic researchers to seek
the immediate implementation of cannabis-based inter-
ventions in the opioid crisis at the regional and national
level, and to subsequently assess their potential impacts
on public health and safety.
Page 5 of 6
Endnotes
1
Matt Meuse, April 27, 2017. B.C. breaks record for
daily overdose ambulance calls. CBC News.
2
Staff, April 19th, 2,017,120 died in B.C. last month of
illicit overdoses. Global News. http://globalnews.ca/news/
3389500/120-died-in-b-c-last-month-of-illicit-overdoses/
3
https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/marijuana/
marijuana-safe-effective-medicine
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank and acknowledge M-J Milloy PhD and Zach
Walsh PhD for their useful suggestions and feedback on this article.
Funding
No funding was necessary for the production of this Commentary.
Availability of data and materials
Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated
or analyzed during the current study.
Authors contributions
PL conceptualized and wrote this article. M-JM and ZW provided feedback
on the manuscript, and their contributions are are recognized in the
acknowledgements.
Ethics approval and consent to participate
N/A
Consent for publication
N/A
Competing interests
Philippe Lucas is VP, Patient Research & Access for Tilray, a federally
authorized medical cannabis production and research company located in
Nanaimo, British Columbia. He is paid a salary for this employment, and
holds stock options in Privateer Holdings, the owner of Tilray.
Publishers Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional affiliations.
Author details
1
Graduate Researcher, Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia,
2300 McKenzie Ave, Victoria, BC V8N 5M8, Canada. 2Social Dimensions of
Health, University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Rd, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada.
3
VP, Patient Research & Access, Tilray, 1100 Maughan Rd, Nanaimo, BC
V9X1J2, Canada.
Received: 19 June 2017 Accepted: 9 August 2017
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Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 44 (2), 125133, 2012
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DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2012.684624 MinnesotaLegislativeReferenceLibrary

Cannabis as an Adjunct to or
Substitute for Opiates in the
Treatment of Chronic Pain

Philippe Lucas, M.A.a

Abstract There is a growing body of evidence to support the use of medical cannabis as an adjunct
to or substitute for prescription opiates in the treatment of chronic pain. When used in conjunction
with opiates, cannabinoids lead to a greater cumulative relief of pain, resulting in a reduction in the
use of opiates (and associated side-effects) by patients in a clinical setting. Additionally, cannabinoids
can prevent the development of tolerance to and withdrawal from opiates, and can even rekindle opiate
analgesia after a prior dosage has become ineffective. Novel research suggests that cannabis may be
useful in the treatment of problematic substance use. These findings suggest that increasing safe access
to medical cannabis may reduce the personal and social harms associated with addiction, particularly
in relation to the growing problematic use of pharmaceutical opiates. Despite a lack of regulatory
oversight by federal governments in North America, community-based medical cannabis dispensaries
have proven successful at supplying patients with a safe source of cannabis within an environment
conducive to healing, and may be reducing the problematic use of pharmaceutical opiates and other
potentially harmful substances in their communities.

Keywords addiction, cannabis, harm reduction, opiates, substitution effect

The medical use of cannabis can be traced back at
least 5,000 years. The oldest reports originate in China and
Egypt. It appears in a medical context in the Vedas, Indias
oldest religious text, and there are reports of its use as a
medicine from fragments of Assyrian texts dating back to
700 B.C. The famous Chinese doctor Hua Tuo (approx.
100 A.D.) reportedly made use of a wine and cannabis mix-
ture as an anaesthetic for surgical operations (Russo 2007;
Fankhauser 2002).
There are numerous reports of the medicinal properties
of cannabis from early in the nineteenth century, the most
noted of which is an 1839 report titled On the Preparations
of the Indian Hemp, or Gunjah by the Irish doctor William
a Research Affiliate, Centre for Addictions Research of BC, Victoria,
BC, Canada.
Please address correspondence to Philippe Lucas, 1104 Topaz Ave.,
Victoria, BC, V8T2M7 Canada; email: plucasyyj@gmail.com
B. OShaughnessy (1843) where he describes diverse appli-
cations for cannabis, including rheumatism, rabies, cholera,
tetanus, cramps and delirium tremens. A few years later
Ernst Freiherr von Bibra published the renowned Narcotics
and the Human Being, devoting thirty pages to the thera-
peutic use of cannabis preparations and hashish (Von Bibra
1855).
By the late nineteenth century, cannabis-based prepa-
rations were manufactured and marketed by Burroughs-
Wellcome & Co. In England; and Bristol-Meyers Squib,
Parke-Davis, and Eli Lilly in North America. The devel-
opment of vaccines to prevent the spread of common
infectious diseases, the increased use of opiates (with the
introduction of the hypodermic syringe), and the discovery
of aspirin at the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth
century resulted in cannabis-based medicines losing their
prevalence in the market place and Western pharmacopoeia
(Grinspoon & Bakalar 1993). The U.S. Pharmacopoeia

Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 125 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012

Lucas
listed cannabis until 1941, stating that it can be used
for treating fatigue, coughing, rheumatism, asthma, delir-
ium tremens, migraine headaches, and the cramps and
depressions associated with menstruation (Mikuria 1973).
Although modern research into therapeutic applica-
tions for cannabis has been seriously stymied by its pro-
hibition in most of the Western world, extensive anecdo-
tal reports and a growing body of laboratory and clin-
ical research suggest that it may have many medicinal
uses, including hunger stimulation for wasting syndrome;
anti-emetic and anti-nausea properties in AIDS or cancer
chemotherapy; antispasmodic properties for multiple scle-
rosis, epilepsy and other neurological dysfunctions; reduc-
ing intra-ocular eye pressure in glaucoma; and analgesic
properties in a large number of chronic pain condi-
tions (Hazekamp & Grotenhermen 2010; Ben Amar 2006;
Grotenhermen & Russo 2002).
CANNABIS AND CHRONIC PAIN
The Canadian Psychological Association (CPA)
defines chronic pain as being pain that doesnt go away,
lasts over six months, or extends beyond the expected
recovery time after an accident or medical intervention.
Additionally, they suggest that chronic pain is a highly
variable condition with many different causes:
There are different types of chronic pain, many of which are
not clearly understood. Chronic pain may be associated with an
illness or disability, such as cancer, arthritis or phantom limb
pain. Some types of chronic pain start after an accident. Others
may start as acute episodes but then the pain becomes constant
over time, such as low back pain. With some types of chronic
pain, like migraine headaches, the pain is recurrent, rather than
constant. There are many other kinds of chronic pain, such
as chronic postsurgical pain, fibromyalgia, temporomandibu-
lar disorders, etc. While in some cases the cause of pain is
known, in many other cases it is not clear why pain persists
(CPA 2007).
Although statistics regarding chronic pain are difficult to
come by, the CPA website states that:
About one in ten Canadians has chronic pain. Chronic pain
affects both sexes and while it is most common in middle
age, it can occur at any agefrom infancy to the elderly.
Chronic pain can make simple movements hurt, disrupt sleep,
and reduce energy. It can impair work, social, recreational, and
household activities. People who have been injured in acci-
dents may develop anxiety symptoms as well as pain. Chronic
pain can have a negative impact on financial security, and
can provoke alcohol or drug abuse. It can disrupt marital and
family relationships . . . Given the impact pain can have on
quality of life, it is no surprise that more than a quarter of all
people who develop chronic pain also experience significant
depression or anxiety (CPA 2007).
While numerous products are available for the relief of
many different types of pain, there remains a significant
group of patients for whom traditional pharmacological
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
Cannabis and Chronic Pain
pain control is incomplete or ineffective. Existing pharma-
cological treatments with known side effects are widely
used for analgesia, but may show a lack of efficacy in
certain conditions (Russo 2008a). These agents include:
Non-opioid analgesics
Opioid analgesics
Anticonvulsants
Antimigraine drugs
Tricyclic antidepressants
Anti-inflammatories
Steroids
Despite modern progress on the understanding and treat-
ment of pain over the last century as well as a recent
North American emphasis on treating pain stemming from
other medical conditions, many problems still remain in
providing safe and effective analgesia for all those with a
legitimate need for pain relief (Russo 2008a).
Chronic pain is highly subjective in nature, and suf-
ferers of the same chronic pain condition may experience
very different symptomology. Fibromyalgia, a chronic pain
syndrome of unknown origins associated with depression
and chronic fatigue is a good example of this effect.
It is interesting to note that Russo (2008a, b) has theo-
rized that intractable and difficult to treat pain conditions
like fibromyalgia may be related to a condition he terms
clinical endocannabinoid deficiency (CECD), which is an
imbalance in the bodys own internal cannabinoid sys-
tem. Furthermore there are numerous different origins for
chronic painvisceral, somatic, neurogenic, etc.which
may explain why so many sufferers report poor control
with standard pharmaceuticals. Therefore chronic pain suf-
ferers are in no way homogeneous, indicating the need
for variable and individual treatment regimens and dosages
(Mersky & Bogduk 1994).
In Europe, chronic musculoskeletal pain of a disabling
nature affects over 25% of elderly people (Frondini et al.
2007). Responses to a 2005 poll indicate that 19% of adults
(38 million) in the U.S. have chronic pain, and 6% (or
12 million) have utilized cannabis in attempts to treat it
(ABC News 2005). Ware and colleagues (2005) report that
25% of chronic pain sufferers in the U.K. use cannabis, and
that medical cannabis was largely associated with younger
age, male gender and previous recreational use. A fur-
ther assessment of cannabis use and chronic pain by Ware
and Beaulieu and Ware (2007) found that there is increas-
ing evidence that cannabinoids are safe and effective for
refractory chronic pain conditions including neuropathic
pain associated with multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthri-
tis, and peripheral neuropathy associated with HIV/AIDS,
concluding that more research is needed.
CANNABINOID RECEPTORS AND ANALGESIA
Over the last 15 years, CB1 and CB2 receptors
have been identified (Pertwee 2002). CB1 receptors are
of particularly high concentration in the central nervous
126 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012
Lucas
system, including several areas of the central nervous sys-
tem that mediate the perception of pain (Walker et al.
1999). CB2 receptors are found mostly in immune tis-
sue, such as leukocytes, the spleen and tonsils. These
receptors are absent from the brain stem, thus explaining
the lack of classic opioid side effects such as respira-
tory depression. This may prove to be an advantage of
cannabinoid-based drugs over opiates. Another similarity
with the opioid system is the existence of endogenous
cannabinoid receptor agonists, the most studied of which
is anandamide (Pertwee 2002). Evidence shows that this
endocannabinoid can serve as a neuromodulator or neuro-
transmitter (DiMarzo et al. 1998), and it has been found
that cannabinoid receptors outside of the brain and spine
are affected when skin or flesh is cut or injured; anan-
damide is released and helps modulates the pain associated
with injury. Rats treated with a chemical blocker for anan-
damide showed an extended and more severe response
to pain (Calignano et al. 1998). There is recent evidence
that anandamide and methandamide can activate vanil-
loid receptors on sensory neurons. The extent to which
exogenous or endogenous cannabinoids can modulate pain
through vanilloid receptors that are known to be present on
nociceptive sensory neurons has yet to be fully established
(Pertwee 2002).
HUMAN STUDIES ON CANNABINOIDS
AS ANALGESICS
Although human studies on the therapeutic effects of
cannabis have been significantly limited by a restrictive
legal regime and the unavailability of cannabis products
to conduct such studies, available research suggests that
cannabis has strong potential as an analgesic. An early
study of synthetic delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (hereafter
referred to as THC for the rest of this paper) adminis-
tered orally in 10 to 25 mg doses was shown to relieve
pain in cancer patients without significant effects on
mood (Davies et al. 1974). A study by Blake and col-
leagues (2006) examining the effects of Sativex, an oro-
mucosal whole plant cannabis extract with a THC/CBD
ratio of 50:50, on rheumatoid arthritis reported significant
analgesic effect compared to placebo. Although some mild
or moderate adverse effects like dizziness were reported
by the active treatment group, Sativex was generally well-
tolerated.
In a study to determine the effect of smoked cannabis
on pain related to HIV-associated sensory neuropathy and
an experimental pain model, researchers found that smoked
cannabis was well tolerated and effectively relieved chronic
neuropathic pain (Abrams et al. 2007). A study by Wilsey
and colleagues (2008) on smoked cannabis and neu-
ropathic pain compared the effect of high THC (7%)
cannabis with low THC (3.5%) cannabis and placebo.
The results showed that both active preparations were
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
Cannabis and Chronic Pain
effective at reducing pain, with no apparent correlation
between dose levels and pain relief. Although some mod-
erate adverse effects were identified, the treatment was
well-tolerated.
Ware and colleagues (2010) recently published results
from a randomized clinical trial on smoked cannabis and
chronic pain, finding that 9.4% THC cannabis used three
times daily for five days reduced the intensity of pain
and improved sleep in patients compared to placebo, and
was well tolerated by the 21 patients who concluded
the study. Although study participants reported mild or
moderate adverse effects, these were comparable to the
adverse effects of non-smoked pharmaceutical cannabinoid
medicines.
CANNABINOIDS AND OPIOIDS IN THE
TREATMENT OF CHRONIC PAIN
Opiates are among the most widely prescribed treat-
ments for chronic pain in the world (Dhalla, Mamdani &
Sivilotti 2009; Compton & Volkow 2006). Evidence of the
medical use of opiates dates back at least to the Ebers
Papyrus from 1500 B.C. (Brownstein 1993), and there is lit-
tle doubt that despite the potential for serious side effects,
including death, and the ongoing development of alterna-
tive approaches to pain relief, pharmaceutical opiates will
continue to be one of the most effective tools available
for the treatment of chronic pain. However, a major per-
sonal and public health concern associated with the use
of pharmaceutical opiates is dependence. In fact, accord-
ing to the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration, the dependence on and abuse of pharma-
ceutical medications is currently the fastest growing form
of problematic substance use in North America (SAMHSA
2007). As a result of this increase in the use and abuse of
prescription pharmaceuticals, Moore and colleagues (2007)
report that serious adverse events and deaths resulting from
prescription drug use in the U.S. nearly tripled between
1998 and 2005. Addiction to and abuse of pharmaceutical
opiates has been identified as one of the main personal and
public health concerns associated with this trend (Dhalla,
Mamdani & Sivilotti 2009; Fischer et al. 2008; Compton &
Volkow 2006).
The following research suggests that when used in
conjunction with opiates, cannabinoids can lead to a greater
cumulative relief of pain, which may in turn result in a
reduction in the use of opiates (and associated side effects)
by patients in a clinical setting (Cichewicz et al. 1999). This
may not only have positive impact on patient pain levels
and overall quality of life, but also on the overall morbidity
and mortality associated with pharmaceutical opiates, and
on the high levels of opiate addiction in both patients and
the general population.
A randomized double-blind crossover placebo-
controlled study of oral medication for pain in ten terminal
cancer patients comparing 5, 10, 15, and 20 mg of THC in
127 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012
Lucas
single doses with placebo found a significant dose-related
analgesic effect at the two higher doses (Noyes et al.
1975a). A larger follow-up study of 36 terminally ill
patients with cancer pain was designed to compare 10 and
20 mg THC with 60 and 120 mg codeine and placebo.
The results suggest that 10 mg THC was slightly less
effective than 60 mg codeine, and that 20 mg THC was
slightly more effective than 120 mg of codeine (Noyes
et al. 1975b).
A later single-patient study examining the analgesic
effects of oral doses of 5mg of THC, 50 mg of codeine, and
placebo showed that both active preparations were signifi-
cantly more effective than placebo at relieving MS-related
pain. The only major reported difference between the active
drugs was that THC relieved spasticity better than codeine
(Maurer et al. 1990).
A study by Pinsger (2006) on the effects of nabilone
(a synthetic cannabinoid) as an adjunct to existing chronic
pain therapy resulted in reduced pain and improved quality
of life. Although some mild to moderate side effects were
noted, the majority of patients reported overall benefits
when compared to their usual chronic pain treatment.
A clinical study by Nurmikko (2007) examining the
effects of Sativex as an adjunct to existing stable analgesia
in patients suffering from peripheral neuropathic pain
showed that 26% of participants reported more than 30%
reductions in pain intensity, compared with 15% in those
using placebo. Adverse events were few and largely mild
or moderate.
A randomized clinical study by Skrabek and col-
leagues (2008) on nabilone as an adjunct treatment for
15 patients affected by fibromyalgia reported significant
benefits in pain and overall function. Mild side-effects were
reported, including weight gain, but participants indicated
overall increases in quality of life.
Narang and colleagues (2008) conducted a phase 1 and
phase 2 study examining the efficacy of dronabinol as
an adjunct to opioid therapy for the treatment of chronic
pain. Both studies showed that dronabinol decreased pain
intensity and increased quality of life compared to base-
line opiate therapy. The findings also reported mild to
moderate side effects including drowsiness, but patients
also reported an improvement in the quality of sleep
and overall satisfaction with the treatment compared to
placebo.
Additionally, studies also show that cannabinoids can
prevent the development of tolerance to and withdrawal
from opiates (Cichewicz & Welch 2003), and can even
rekindle opiate analgesia after a prior dosage has become
ineffective (Russo 2008a; Cichewicz & McCarthy 2003).
Furthermore, research by Blume and colleagues (2011) and
Ramesh and colleagues (2011) suggests that cannabinoid
receptors might interrupt signaling in the opioid receptor
systems, affecting both cravings for opiates and withdrawal
severity.
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
Cannabis and Chronic Pain
GATEWAY OR SAFER SUBSTITUTE?
Despite its low potential for individual harm or abuse
and minimal impact on public health and associated social
costs, the medical use of cannabis remains controversial
with police, physicians, and policymakers. One of the main
concerns cited by opponents is that it could lead to either
dependence on cannabis, or potentially be a gateway to
the use of and addiction to hard drugs. The premise of
the gateway or stepping stone hypothesis is that the use of
one substance may subsequently lead to the use of another.
In regards to illicit substance use, this theory suggests
that the use of cannabis may facilitate the use of poten-
tially more harmful/addictive substances such as opiates,
cocaine, or amphetamines. The evidential foundation for
this theoretical construct is based on research indicating
that most people who use so-called hard drugs such as
heroin or cocaine report a prior use of cannabis. Lessem
and colleagues (2006: 499) state that:
The gateway theory is comprised of two interrelated obser-
vations. The first is that marijuana use is associated with later,
non-marijuana, illicit drug use, and the second is that there
is a temporal ordering of substance experimentation in which
lower order substances, which are more commonly used, pre-
cede the use of higher order substances. Thus, typically one
licit substance such as alcohol or cigarettes is used first in a
sequence. Marijuana is usually the first illicit substance used
before progressing on to using other illicit substances.
While most studies have focused on the social or
economic determinants that could lead cannabis users to
experiment with other substances (Wagner & Anthony
2002; Pacula et al. 2002), some research suggests that this
progression may be due to biological changes in individuals
exposed to cannabis (Lessem et al. 2006).
However, both social and clinical research has con-
vincingly debunked the gateway or stepping stone hypoth-
esis. The Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs final
report on cannabis (Nolin et al. 2002) reviewed all of the
available evidence on the topic and drew the following
conclusions:
We feel that the available data show that it is not cannabis
itself that leads to other drug use but the combination of the
following factors:
Factors related to personal and family history that
predispose to early entry on a trajectory of use of
psychoactive substances starting with alcohol;
Early introduction to cannabis, earlier than the average
for experimenters, and more rapid progress towards a
trajectory of regular use;
Frequenting of a marginal or deviant environment;
Availability of various substances from the same deal-
ers.
Thus, while it may be true that many people who use
hard drugs have also used cannabis, the reasons range
128 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012
Lucas
from social factors such as poverty to the illegal status of
the substance, which results in black market control over its
distribution. As the Canadian Senate discovered, drug use
trends in Canada simply do not support the gateway or step-
ping stone hypothesis, concluding that if we come back to
trends in drug use in the population, while more than 30%
have used cannabis, less than 4% have used cocaine and
less than 1% heroin (Nolin et al. 2002: 126).
The counterpoint to gateway theory is substitution
effect, an economic theory that suggests that variations in
the availability of one product (through changes in cost or
social policy), may affect the use of another:
Within a behavioral economic framework, reinforcer interac-
tions are classified into multiple categories; two commodities
may be substitutes for one another (e.g., two forms of opioid
drugs); they may be complementary, whereby the value of
one is enhanced by consumption of the other; or they may be
independent, such that the reinforcing functions of one are
not altered by the presence or absence of the other (Hursh et al.
2005: 24).
Changes in the use of cannabis, opiates, or other
drugswhether for medical or recreational usecan
be the result of: (a) economic shifts affecting end-
user costs; (b) changes in policy which effect availabil-
ity; (c) legal risk and associated repercussions; or (d)
psychoactive/pharmacological substitution. In regards to
psychoactive substitution, Hursh and colleagues (2005:
25) suggest that pharmacological therapies for the treat-
ment of drug abuse can also be conceptualized as alter-
native commodities that either substitute for illicit drug
use (e.g., agonist therapy) or reduce the potency of illicit
drugs directly (e.g., narcotic antagonist therapy). Perhaps
the best example of the viability of psychoactive substi-
tution is the now-common prescription use of methadone
as a substitute to injection heroin use. This substitution
reduces some of the risks associate with injection drug use,
including overdose and disease transmission, since drug
levels are constant and predictable, and methadone is taken
orally rather than injected. Additionally, since methadone
is less expensive than heroin (and is subsidized by provin-
cial health registries in Canada), this substitution has the
added potential benefit of reducing drug-related theft and
crime. However, many methadone patients have reported
health concerns associated with its use as well, and recent
research suggests that prescription heroin or opiates may be
a safer and more effective alternative for users than either
black-market heroin or methadone (NAOMI Study Team
2008).
As suggested earlier, not all psychoactive substitution
is the result of a deliberate decision made on an individ-
ual basis. At the population level it is often the unintended
result of public policy shifts or other social changes, such
as cost, criminalization or availability. In an examination of
hospital drug episodes in 13 U.S. states that decriminalized
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
Cannabis and Chronic Pain
the personal recreational use of cannabis in the 1970s,
Model (1993) found that users shifted from using harder
drugs to marijuana after its legal risks were decreased.
Findings from Australias 2001 National Drug Strategy
Household Survey (AIHW 2002) specifically identify sub-
stitution effect, indicating 56.6% of heroin users substituted
cannabis when their substance of choice was unavailable.
The survey also found that 31.8% of people who use phar-
maceutical analgesics for nonmedical purposes reported
using cannabis when painkillers werent available. This
evidence strongly suggests that the increased availability
of cannabis (through a reduction of penalties or actual
regulated, legal access) might lead to a population level
reduction in the licit and illicit use of opiates and pharma-
ceutical analgesics and the associated personal, social and
public health harms and costs.
The illegal status of cannabis across most of the world
has made clinical trials on cannabis as a treatment for
problematic substance use nearly impossible, but a num-
ber of studies on both humans and animals suggest that the
cannabinoid system plays a role in dependence and addic-
tion to both licit and illicit substances. Current research
shows that behavioral effects and motivational responses
induced by nicotine can be modulated by the endocannabi-
noid system (Balerio, Aso & Maldonado 2006).
Additionally, a study by the New York State
Psychiatric Institute on people with cocaine dependence
and comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has
shown that cannabis users were more successful than other
patients in abstaining from cocaine use (Aharonovich et al.
2006). An earlier study by Labigalini Jr. and colleagues
(1999) also noted this effect on people with a dependence
on crack cocaine, reporting that 68% of the 25 subjects
who self-medicated with cannabis in order to reduce
cravings were able to give up crack altogether. Researchers
theorized that this phenomenon is biological and psy-
chological. Addiction to stimulants result in a decline
in the cerebral activity involving serotonin transmitters,
which is believed to result in increased impulsiveness and
craving. Cannabinoids act as seratoninenergic agonists,
and as serotonin levels increase, impulsiveness and craving
decline. Reports from study subjects also suggested that
the ritual of preparing cannabis to smoke helped reduce
the habituated psychological dependence associated with
the preparation of crack cocaine.
More recently, a study by Reiman (2009) of
350 cannabis patients who purchased their medicine from
a community-based dispensary in Berkeley suggests that
many patients report using it as a substitute for other
potentially more dangerous substances, particularly phar-
maceuticals. Results show that 40% report using cannabis
as a substitute for alcohol, 26% as a substitute for illicit
drugs, and 66% as a substitute for prescription drugs.
Patients cited a number of reasons for using cannabis
instead of pharmaceutical drugs: 65% reported less adverse
129 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012
Lucas
side effects, 57% cited better symptom management, and
34% found that cannabis had less withdrawal potential
than their other medications. A similar survey study of
400 patients is currently underway in four medical cannabis
dispensaries located in British Columbia, Canada.
Finally, exploratory research suggests that cannabis
use does not interfere with formal substance abuse treat-
ment. Data from the California Outcomes Measurement
System (CalOMS) were compared for medical (autho-
rized) marijuana users (N = 18) and non-marijuana users
who were admitted to a public substance abuse treat-
ment program in California. Behavioral and social treat-
ment outcomes recorded by clinical staff at discharge and
reported to the California Department of Alcohol and Drug
Programs were assessed for both groups, and although the
sample was small, cannabis use did not seem to com-
promise substance abuse treatment among the medical
marijuana using group, who (based on these preliminary
data) fared equal to or better than nonmedical marijuana
users in several important outcome categories (e.g., treat-
ment completion, criminal justice involvement, medical
concerns) (Schwartz 2010).
MAXIMIZING THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS
OF MEDICAL CANNABIS USE
While much of the research cited above suggests that
cannabinoids can be safe and effective adjuncts or alterna-
tives to pharmaceutical opiates, the illegality of cannabis
and the associated stigma in patients who might bene-
fit from its use has significantly hampered research into
therapeutic potential of both whole-plant preparations and
pharmaceutical cannabinoid treatments (Lucas 2009). As a
result, the international prohibition on cannabis has not
only led to significant social costs with little impact on
overall usage rates in the general population, it may also be
inadvertently leading to increased suffering and addiction
in patients suffering from chronic pain.
In light of recent evidence that cannabis not only helps
relieve the symptoms of a number of serious conditions,
but might also increase the success rate of both HIV/AIDS
and hepatitis C treatment (Abrams et al. 2007; Sylvestre,
Clements & Malibu 2006), it can be argued that the govern-
ments throughout the world have a moral, ethical obligation
to ensure that this medicine is legally available to patients
who might benefit from its use. The same argument could
be made if cannabis is shown to be effective in reducing
the non-prescription use of other potentially more danger-
ous licit and illicit substances, including pharmaceutical
opiates.
In an essay on the globalization of ayahuasca, which
is an entheogenic plant-based medicine from the Amazon
basin that, like cannabis, has a long history of traditional
use, Tupper (2007:5) suggests that:
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
Cannabis and Chronic Pain
. . . a shift to a generative metaphor of drugs as tools offers
a much more nuanced way to conceiving of the risks and
benefits posed by ayahuasca practices. Rather than essentializ-
ing psychoactive substances as inherently dangerous, to regard
them as toolsancient technologies for altering consciousness
. . . allows for a realistic assessment of their potential benefits
and harms according to who uses them, in what contexts and
for what purposes.
Although this may appear reflective of a harm reduc-
tion approach to drugs, Tupper insists that conceptualizing
drugs as tools necessitates a move beyond policies sim-
ply based on reducing potential harms, suggesting that
benefits also need to be explored and where possible, maxi-
mized by government policies and practices. He continues:
The philosophy of harm reduction is also further illumi-
nated by a shift to the generative metaphor of drugs as tools.
To the extent that policy-makers or practitioners emphasize a
behaviours potential risks, the harm reduction policy approach
is justified. However, the tool metaphor for psychoactive sub-
stances warrants a corollary notion of benefit maximization,
the other side of the harm reduction coin. Instead of approach-
ing drug policy from a deficit perspective . . . the tool metaphor
opens discursive avenues for realistic policy considerations of
benefits as well as harms.
As with ayahuasca, the concept of harm reduction
may not be wholly appropriate to maximize the poten-
tial health benefits of medical cannabis. A great deal
of research indicates that cannabis is far less danger-
ous than licit substances like alcohol and tobacco, and
safer than many over-the-counter or prescription pharma-
ceuticals (Grotenhermen & Russo 2002; Grinspoon 1999;
Grinspoon & Bakalar 1998), and many have suggested that
the greatest potential harms of cannabis use are based on
a its illegal status, including arrest or the vagaries of the
black-market (Nolin et al. 2002). In this light, harm reduc-
tion policies associated with the use of other substances
that are designed to prevent the spread of infectious dis-
ease, reduce the likelihood of overdose and stem addiction
and related crimesuch as needle-exchange, safe con-
sumption sites, heroin maintenance or opiate substitution
dont readily apply to the use and distribution of medical
cannabis.
Research suggests that community-based medical
cannabis dispensaries appear to both reduce the potential
harms and maximize the benefits of medical cannabis use
by removing some of the social stigma associated with
the therapeutic use of cannabis and by separating medi-
cal cannabis access from the potential dangers of the black
market (i.e. lack of safety and quality assurances, pressure
to try other illicit substances, prohibitionassociated harms
such as arrest and prosecution) (Lucas 2010, 2009, 2008;
Reiman 2009, 2006; Belle-Isle & Hathaway 2007; Belle-
Isle 2006). Additionally, they increase access to a safe con-
sistent supply of medical cannabis within an environment
conducive to health and healing, which may be directly
130 Volume 44 (2), April June 2012
Lucas
and indirectly leading to a reduction in the use of phar-
maceuticals, alcohol and illicit substances in their commu-
nity. Moreover, nonprofit dispensaries like the Vancouver
Island Compassion Society (VICS) contribute to the overall
social capital of their client-members through membership,
joint knowledge creation, and inclusion and participation
in a social movement informed by public health, harm
reduction and human rights (Lucas 2009; Belle-Isle &
Hathaway 2007; Belle-Isle 2006; Reiman 2006). As such
this community-based, patient-centered model is growing
in both legitimacy and popularity, and is now the predomi-
nant means for patients access in Canada and in many U.S.
state-run medical cannabis programs (Lucas 2010, 2009;
Reiman 2006).
DISCUSSION
Evidence is growing that cannabis can be an effec-
tive treatment for chronic pain, presenting a safe and viable
alternative or adjunct to pharmaceutical opiates. Addiction
to pharmaceutical opiates has been noted by the medical
community as one of the common side-effects of extended
use by patients (such as those suffering from chronic pain),
and a growing body of research suggests that some of the
biological actions of cannabis and cannabinoids may be
useful in reducing this dependence. Therefore cannabis has
the potential to both relieve suffering for those suffering
from chronic pain, and to reduce morbidity and mortal-
ity often associated the use and abuse of pharmaceutical
opiates.
Since both the potential harms of pharmaceutical opi-
ates and the relative safety of cannabis are well established,
research on substitution effect suggests that cannabis may
be effective in reducing the use and dependence of other
substances of abuse such as illicit opiates, stimulants and
alcohol. As such, there is reason to believe that a strategy
aiming to maximize the therapeutic potential benefits of
both cannabis and pharmaceutical cannabinoids by expand-
ing their availability and use could potentially lead to a
reduction in the prescription use of opiates, as well as other
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