Imagine if you had to tell a family that their child was never coming home again...because a driver had a few too many drinks and they were too lazy to get a taxi? How would you feel if it was your child? Your brother, your parent, your best friend? Now imagine that you're the one who had a few drinks and thought...Home isn't too far. I'll make it without getting busted. While on the back streets worrying if the booze bus will catch you, you hit someone. How do you live with that for the rest of your life?Cannabis-Involved Traffic Injury Emergency Department Visits After Cannabis Legalization and Commercialization
JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(9):e2331551. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.31551
Key Points
Question Have cannabis-involved traffic injury emergency department visits changed after cannabis legalization and the subsequent commercialization of the cannabis retail market (ie, store and product expansion) in Ontario, Canada?
Findings In this cross-sectional study capturing 426 cannabis-involved traffic injury emergency department visits, annual rates of cannabis involvement increased by 475.3% over 13 years. After accounting for time trends, legalization with restrictions was not associated with increased cannabis involvement during traffic injury emergency department visits; however, market commercialization, which overlapped with the COVID-19 pandemic, was.
Conclusions and Relevance This cross-sectional study found large increases in cannabis involvement in ED visits for traffic injury over time, which may have accelerated following nonmedical cannabis commercialization. Although the frequency of visits was rare, they may reflect broader changes in cannabis-impaired driving. Greater prevention efforts, including targeted education and policy measures, in regions with legal cannabis are indicated.
(Source: Emergency Medicine | JAMA Network Open | JAMA Network
