Cannabis Adverse Events Among Medicaid Recipients in WA State 

With cannabis legalization in WA State has come an increase in cannabis use prevalence, daily use, and THC concentration of available products. These changes have been linked to corresponding health care utilization due to cannabis-related adverse outcomes in Colorado and Canada. These outcomes range from acute events such as panic attacks, cannabis-induced psychosis, vomiting and cardiac events to conditions that typically develop over time, such as cannabis hyperemesis syndrome and cannabis use disorder. Little is known about health care utilization due to cannabis-related adverse outcomes in WA State, the type of events seen most frequently, and how and if they are being recorded in medical records and claims.  

This project will use statewide Medicaid claims data to describe cannabis-related adverse outcomes among Medicaid patients in primary care, hospitals, and emergency departments across the state. Descriptive analyses will (aim 1) identify the prevalence of specific types of cannabis-related events, (aim 2) who is most affected (age, race/ethnicity, gender, county, and other diagnoses), and (aim 3) the healthcare settings most commonly responding to these events. 

---