A growing body of research continues to highlight the economic and health-related impacts of marijuana legalization, and a new study published in Health Economics adds compelling evidence to the discussion. According to researchers from Bowling Green State University and Illinois State University, recreational cannabis legalization is associated with a noticeable decline in prescription drug spending among privately insured working-age adults.
Focusing on the small group insurance market—typically employers with fewer than 50 workers—the study found that prescription drug claims dropped by approximately 6% following the implementation of state-level marijuana legalization laws. Interestingly, this effect was not immediate but became statistically significant by the second full year of legalized recreational cannabis use.
"The reduction in claims in the small group market grows stronger in magnitude over time," the researchers noted, suggesting that as cannabis becomes more integrated into patients' routines, its role as a substitute for traditional pharmaceuticals becomes clearer.
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