Op-Ed: How Cannabis Can Help Solve America's Opioid Crisis

 

Remedy Recovery founder Joe Schrank believes that weed is an exit drug and an alternative to traditional rehab.  

“Here’s the dirty little secret of the $35 billion rehab industry: Rehab doesn’t work,” he stated. “SAMHSA estimates that there are 23 million Americans in need of treatment for substance use disorder. Each with their own unique story, specific to their family, ethnicity, gender, culture. It’s as individual as your thumb print. It’s not logical or responsible to think that they would all get well the same way.”

Schrank believes that some resources like rehab and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) are effective for some, but it’s unreasonable to think they will work for everyone. And if both options seem unrealistic, studies have shown that cannabis might be the best alternative solution.

“Harm reduction has been part of drug policy for many years, but it’s frowned upon and marginalized. The fever pitch of opiate misuse is forcing the issue,” he stated. “Cannabis is inherently a harm reduction measure. To eliminate self-harming drug use for limited risk cannabis use, manages risk by 99.9%. Cannabis has no lethal dose, there aren’t deaths associated with cannabis use.”

According to a recent study by the Journal of American Medical Association, states with safe, legal, and accessible cannabis have 25% fewer overdose deaths than states without. So, if no other method seems viable for addiction, cannabis could be the answer.  

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