The ignored solution to opioid epidemic
As a board-certified family and integrative medicine physician, I'm always looking for the best, long-term treatments for my patients. Unfortunately, a physician's options are limited in Illinois, which has fueled the state's devastating opioid epidemic. As opioid overdose deaths continue to climb in Illinois, we become more desperate for a safe alternative. It becomes increasingly difficult to understand why our state policymakers are ignoring a tool that could make a world of difference: medical cannabis.
In a recent editorial, the Daily Herald called the opioid crisis a "nationwide battle on many fronts," and wrote that coordinated efforts were happening "in a variety of ways." This may be true, but these efforts need to include medical cannabis in order to address the epidemic as fully as possible. Other non-pharmacologic and non-opioid pain medication strategies must be pursued fervently as well. The effort is "half-baked," however, without attention to medical cannabis as a viable player in the war against opioids and heroin.
I've seen early success working within the MCPP, but it's become clear that it's far too restrictive. Not all patients can be certified for medical cannabis due to the restrictions in place, so these patients may continue to suffer from opioid addiction and possibly overdose. Bachuber et al. in the Journal of the American Medical Association (2014) found a 24.8 percent reduction in opioid overdose deaths in 13 states with medical cannabis programs between 1999 and 2010. This is a statistic that should open the door for medical cannabis' inclusion, at least for consideration, in the war against opioids.
As an early adopter of the Illinois Medical Cannabis Pilot Program, I've certified almost 120 patients for medical cannabis, of whom 88 percent reported some level of relief from pain and insomnia.
Cannabis is not a perfect solution and has its risks, but the risks are appreciably less compared to opioids' greater risk of addiction and death.
Leslie Mendoza Temple
Glenview