Medication and substance use increases among people using cannabis medically during the COVID-19 pandemic

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic strains the medical system, limiting access to healthcare services. Many people use cannabis medically for chronic health conditions and as a substitute for other medications. As such, changes in cannabis access associated with COVID-19 may result in increased non-cannabis drug use.

We recruited N = 353 individuals through Amazon Mechanical Turk who reported current medical cannabis use in April and May of 2020. We assessed the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on patterns of medication and substance use, as well as on cannabis use patterns.

Over half of participants either started using or increased use of medications or substances because of the COVID-19 pandemic, most commonly alcohol and sleep aids. Over a third of participants increased cannabis use while 25% decreased cannabis use. Approximately 40% of participants who increased or started use of medications/substances (other than cannabis) reported doing so because of changed access to medical cannabis.

The reported increase in drug use among people using medical cannabis is concerning. Because the pandemic will likely continue for months (or even years), having a better understanding of why this is occurring is critical for developing effective harm-reduction strategies in this population.