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Abstract
Evidence over the past decade shows medical cannabis legalization presents unique opportunities to patients suffering from a variety of ailments. As more states legalize medical cannabis and patient cannabis use increases, research and news reports are also indicating the unique challenges to medical and regulatory professionals that cannabis poses. This dissertation presents three chapters analyzing different aspects of medical cannabis policy, including the variation between medical cannabis laws, the impact medical cannabis has on shipments of opioids to pharmacies, and finally the association between an advance in medical cannabis policy and changes in pharmaceutical prescribing. Chapter 1, “State Variation in U.S. Medical Cannabis Limits, Restrictions, and Therapeutic Cannabis Dosing,” explores medical cannabis possession and purchase limits in depth, and presents a consistent quantification of cannabis that can be used to compare limits across states. Chapter 2, “The Association Between Medical Cannabis Laws and Flows of Opioids by Dosage Strength to US Pharmacies - Evidence from Detailed ARCOS Data, 2006-2014” (with W. David Bradford), evaluates how medical cannabis dispensary openings impacted the shipments of opioids to pharmacies during a period of rapid opioid proliferation in the United States. Chapter 3, “The Addition of Cannabis to Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs and Prescriptions of Cannabis-Contraindicated and Controlled Medications,” evaluates how a policy that allows prescribers to see if their patients have access to medical cannabis is impacting the prescribing rates of medications contraindicated for use with cannabis.