States that legalized recreational marijuana saw approximately 3.5 fewer opioid-related deaths per 100,000 residents, according to a new study released this month.

The research, which analyzed state-level data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found that the reduction in fatal overdoses was most pronounced in states that implemented legalization earlier in the opioid crisis.

“Legalization led to an immediate decline in opioid overdose death rates, which grew even stronger and persisted after five years,” wrote the researchers from Texas Tech University, Angelo State University, Metropolitan State University, New Mexico State University, and the American Institute for Economic Research.

States that adopted legalization later showed similar trends, though the effects typically emerged about three years after implementation, coinciding with the establishment of dispensary networks, the study found.

The researchers employed a novel statistical approach to examine the relationship between legalization and overdose deaths, which they say helped establish a clearer causal link than previous studies.

The paper, which has not been peer-reviewed, noted limitations including the inability to assess longer-term effects, as recreational marijuana legalization began only 11 years ago. The analysis also did not include data on non-fatal overdoses or hospitalizations.

The study was posted to the Social Science Research Network, a preprint repository for academic research. Read it here.

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