Evidence shows medical marijuana lowered prescription drugs use

As expected, medicinal marijuana gave a big blow to big pharma’s hefty profits. American states that allow their residents to use marijuana for medical purposes have seen a marked decline in prescription drugs.

At a time, when 17 states and the District of Columbia had passed medical marijuana laws, researchers from the University of Georgia estimated the savings from lower prescription drug use from these areas at $165.2 million US over the full year. The study went further to forecast, if every state legalizes medical marijuana, Medicare would save more than $468 million US a year on pharmaceuticals for disabled Americans and those 65 and older.

The researchers believe that people are using marijuana as an alternative to prescription drugs to treat ailments as pain, depression and sleep disorders.

"The results suggest people are really using marijuana as medicine and not just using it for recreational purposes," said study lead author Ashley Bradford in a statement. 

The researchers analyzed the prescription data for nine conditions in which marijuana can be used as an alternative to prescription drugs. The results showed that fewer prescriptions were written for every category except for glaucoma.

The new study answers the calls asking for if there is any evidence that medical marijuana is being used as medicine.  "When states turned on medical marijuana laws, we did see a rather substantial turn away from FDA-approved medicine," David Bradford - a health economist at the University of Georgia School of Public and International Affairs and co-author of the study - said.

For pain, the annual number of daily doses prescribed per physician fell by more than 11 per cent. "The results show that marijuana might be beneficial with diverting people away from opioids," Bradford said. 

Medicare does not pay for medicinal marijuana in the U.S., nor do private health insurance plans.