A Canadian study has identified a somewhat tenuous link between the presence of non-medical cannabis retail stores in a neighbourhood and a slight uptick in hospital emergency department (ED) visits.
Researchers from various Canadian institutions have examined the association between exposure to cannabis retail stores and cannabis-related harms; focusing on attributable emergency department (ED) visits between 2017 and 2022.
The study involved neighborhoods that had a cannabis store within 1000 metres; covering 10 574 neighborhoods containing 6 140 595 persons aged 15 to 105 years.
While cannabis-attributable ED visits were increasing over time before retail store openings, the rate of visits remained constant after stores opened. However, in matched unexposed neighborhoods, the rate of ED visits decreased.
“Collectively, neighborhoods that were exposed to retail stores had a monthly increase of 1.30 cannabis-attributable ED visits per 100 000 persons.”
The researchers says their findings suggest banning stores in certain areas, limiting store density, or placing restrictions on numbers may offer public health benefits.
The study, which was funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research, has been published in the Annals of Internal Medicine
Quite a bit has been written about the societal impact of dispensaries on local neighborhoods. As with many other cannabis related issues, there doesn’t yet seem to be much in the way of consensus.
A NORML page containing research on the topic indicates retail cannabis facilities aren’t associated with increased criminality in a neighbourhood, but dispensary closures are. Interestingly, according to some of the studies highlighted on that page; retail cannabis facilities are associated with rising housing values. A few indicate prevalence of cannabis dispensaries is not positively associated with increased teen use.
However, the results some other studies conflict with the conclusions of these studies. There’s also been research indicating the availability of recreational cannabis dispensaries and the presence of storefront signage appear to be associated with increased cannabis use and reduced risk perceptions.
But local cannabis dispensaries can also drive economic development, from creating jobs and generating and tax revenue that can be routed into the communities in which they operate.
