Wonder why cannabis public health risks outweigh its tax revenue?

Wonder why cannabis public health risks outweigh its tax revenue?

Doctors Warn Cannabis (Marijuana) Can Cause Serous Health Hazards

The Evidence

Thousands of peer reviewed medical articles have been published on the harms of cannabis and marijuana. Reviews of the medical benefits of cannabis published in highly ranked journals reveal limited benefits for a few conditions, and generally do not consider long-term consequences to individuals, families, communities, and healthcare systems, including:

  • Emergency Department (ED) visits
  • Psychosis
  • Suicide
  • Brain development
  • Neonatal exposure
  • Opioid use
  • Traffic fatalities
  • High-potency cannabis use in adolescence
  • Cannabis hyperemesis syndrome (recurrent, severe vomiting and nausea)

Conclusion

We recognize that there are many sides to the marijuana debate, and we call attention to the growing science on public health risk. America has seen this minimizing of health risks for financial gain before.

  • Tobacco was promoted as relatively harmless before nicotine addiction became ubiquitous and the link to lung cancer was proven.
  • The opioid industry marketed its drugs as non-addictive and safe in the early 1990s, and we are still paying the price.
  • Let’s learn from our historical mistakes and not repeat them with marijuana. Drug addiction and death have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. We urgently need smart public health policies that follow the science, prevent addiction, and decrease mental illness including psychosis, depression, and suicide.

It is our conclusion, based on review of the scientific evidence, that the public health effects of commercial cannabis on Americans are harmful. These growing negative impacts further strain health care and addiction treatment resources to an extent that far surpasses taxation revenues.

Be Informed

Visit the IASIC Library to view the extensive and growing research on the harms of cannabis use, translated for public understanding.

IASIC, The International Association on the Science and Impact of Cannabis, hopes lawmakers and voters will follow the science and promote public health.

IASIC is a non-partisan and non-political group created to facilitate informed decisions when considering cannabis policy and law.