Dowell D, Haegerich TM, Chou R. CDC guideline for prescribing opioids for chronic pain—United States, 2016. MMWR Recomm Rep. ePub: 15 March 2016. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.rr6501e1er.
Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado Is Followed by an Increase in Marijuana-related ED Visits by Nonresidents
BY JEFF BAUER
FROM N ENGL J MED
"Marijuana tourism”—when individuals travel to a state where marijuana is legal for purpose of consuming the drug—may be responsible for a steep increase in marijuana-related visits by out-of-state residents observed at a Colorado ED from 2013 to 2014. Colorado legalized marijuana in 2012, and retail sales began in 2014.
Researchers looked at the rates of marijuana-related visits (determined by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision codes) to the ED of a single urban academic hospital hospital in Aurora, CO from 2012 to 2014. Researchers compared the rate of such visits by Colorado residents versus out-of-state residents based on the ZIP code patients provided when they registered in the ED.
The rate of marijuana-related ED visits among out-of-state residents roughly doubled from 85 per 10,000 visits in 2013 to 168 per 10,000 visits in 2014. The rate of such visits among Colorado residents did not change significantly during that time: it was 106 per 10,000 visits in 2013 and 112 per 10,000 visits in 2014. From 2012 to 2013—before marijuana was legalized—the rate of marijuana-related ED visits did not change significantly among Colorado residents or out-of-state residents.
Statewide, according to data from the Colorado Hospital Association, the rate of marijuana-related ED visits by out-of-state residents increased from 112 per 10,000 visits in 2013 to 163 per 10,000 visits in 2014. Among Colorado residents, this rate increased from 86 per 10,000 visits in 2013 to 101 per 10,000 visits in 2014.
Kim HS, Hall KE, Genco EK, Van Dyke M, Barker E, Monte AA. Marijuana tourism and emergency department visits in Colorado. N Engl J Med. 2016;374(8):797-798. doi:10.1056/NEJMc1515009.