Marijuana legalization not associated with increased rates of psychosis, American Medical Association study of 63 million people finds
Study authors specifically looked at commercial and Medicare Advantage claims data to assess the potential impact of legalization
Thursday, January 26, 2023
There is “no statistically significant increase” in psychosis-related diagnoses in states that have legalized marijuana compared to those that continue to criminalize cannabis, a new study published by the American Medical Association concluded. Researchers carried out an analysis of more than 63 million health insurance beneficiaries from 2003-2017 to address the idea that cannabis reform could be linked to higher rates of psychosis, which certain prohibitionists have cited to argue against legalization. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Psychiatry, determined that, “compared with no legalization policy, states with legalization policies experienced no statistically significant increase in rates of psychosis-related diagnoses.”
