You are significantly less likely to be involved in a fatal traffic accident IF you live in a state that has legalized medical marijuana.

Shattering the popular notion that legalizing medicinal cannabis would create death and carnage of the nation’s highways and byways, the American Journal of Public Health (AJPH) recently published a study that vaporized several long-standing myths.

Based on statistics gathered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and utilized in their Fatality Analysis Reporting System, the study shows that between 1985 –2014, those states with medical marijuana laws (MML) witnessed significantly fewer traffic-related fatalities than non-MML states.

Research Method

“Using data from the 1985–2014 Fatality Analysis Reporting System, we examined the association between MMLs and traffic fatalities in multilevel regression models while controlling for contemporaneous secular trends. We examined this association separately for each state enacting MMLs. We also evaluated the association between marijuana dispensaries and traffic fatalities.”

The lower fatality rates noted in the study were thought to be linked to the substitution of marijuana for alcohol. These rates suggest that access to the medicinal herb leads to an overall decrease in accident-related mortalities among those groups at highest risk of alcohol impairment.

Research Results

“On average, MML states had lower traffic fatality rates than non-MML states. Medical marijuana laws were associated with immediate reductions in traffic fatalities in those aged 15 to 24 and 25 to 44 years, and with additional yearly gradual reductions in those aged 25 to 44 years. However, state-specific results showed that only 7 states experienced post-MML reductions. Dispensaries were also associated with traffic fatality reductions in those aged 25 to 44 years.”

In other words, compared to states with MMLs, those with stringent marijuana laws witnessed a higher mortality rate, particularly for those between the prime drinking age of 25 and 44.

Research Conclusion

“Both MMLs and dispensaries were associated with reductions in traffic fatalities, especially among those aged 25 to 44 years. State-specific analysis showed heterogeneity of the MML–traffic fatalities association, suggesting moderation by other local factors. These findings could influence policy decisions on the enactment or repealing of MMLs and how they are implemented.”

With a mountain of variables at play — strict law enforcement, access to alcohol, DUI enforcement programs, and the population of an individual state, this study at least demonstrates that medical marijuana laws are having a net positive impact among the age group most likely to perish in a DUI-related accident.