Cannabis Poisoning ER Visits Rising But Less Severe Than Other Substances
Cannabis poisoning ER visits increased 70% from 2016-2019, but resulted in fewer hospital admissions and deaths compared to heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines, and alcohol poisoning.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Cannabis poisoning ED visits rose from 29,050 (2016) to 49,357 (2019), while most other substance-related visits declined. However, when adjusted for use prevalence, cannabis had lower poisoning rates than heroin, cocaine, and benzodiazepines, with fewer transfers/admissions and deaths.
Key Numbers
Cannabis ED visits: 29,050 (2016) → 49,357 (2019) → 47,655 (2020). Hospitalizations: 12,940 (2016) → 18,470 (2019) → 13,680 (2020). Utilization-adjusted ED prevalence: 77.3 (2016) → 102.0 (2019) per 100,000 users. Lower admission rates and deaths than heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines, alcohol.
How They Did This
Cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative U.S. databases: Nationwide Emergency Department Sample, National Inpatient Sample (2016-2020), and National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Calculated both raw encounter counts and utilization-adjusted prevalence per 100,000 past-year users.
Why This Research Matters
This provides important context for cannabis safety discussions. While cannabis-related ER visits are rising (likely reflecting increased use and potency), the data show that per user, cannabis results in far fewer poisoning emergencies and deaths than most other substances.
The Bigger Picture
The rise in cannabis poisoning visits tracks with legalization and increased use, but the relative safety profile compared to other substances is notable. This doesn't mean cannabis is harmless, but it contextualizes the risk within the broader substance landscape.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
ICD coding may misclassify cannabis involvement. Polysubstance use is common and hard to disentangle. 2020 data affected by COVID-19 pandemic changes in healthcare utilization. Edibles vs. smoking not differentiated.
Questions This Raises
- ?Is the rise in cannabis ER visits driven primarily by edibles or concentrates?
- ?How has legalization specifically affected poisoning rates?
- ?Will utilization-adjusted rates continue to rise as new products emerge?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Large nationally representative datasets with utilization-adjusted analyses, though limited by cross-sectional design and ICD coding accuracy.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2026, analyzing 2016-2020 data that captures key years of expanding legalization.
- Original Title:
- United States healthcare encounters for poisoning involving cannabis relative to other substances.
- Published In:
- The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 1-12 (2026)
- Authors:
- Conrad, Saranrat W, Greene, Christina R, Dal Pan, Gerald, Callahan, Catherine L, Meyer, Tamra E, Radin, Rose G
- Database ID:
- RTHC-08183
Evidence Hierarchy
A snapshot of a population at one point in time.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Are more people going to the ER for cannabis?
Yes — cannabis poisoning ER visits rose from about 29,000 in 2016 to nearly 50,000 in 2019. However, cannabis use also grew significantly during this period, and per-user rates remain much lower than for heroin, cocaine, or benzodiazepines.
How does cannabis compare to other drugs for ER visits?
Per user, cannabis causes fewer poisoning emergencies than heroin, cocaine, and benzodiazepines. Single-substance cannabis cases also had fewer hospital admissions and deaths than most other substances in 2020.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-08183APA
Conrad, Saranrat W; Greene, Christina R; Dal Pan, Gerald; Callahan, Catherine L; Meyer, Tamra E; Radin, Rose G. (2026). United States healthcare encounters for poisoning involving cannabis relative to other substances.. The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1080/00952990.2025.2603243
MLA
Conrad, Saranrat W, et al. "United States healthcare encounters for poisoning involving cannabis relative to other substances.." The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1080/00952990.2025.2603243
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "United States healthcare encounters for poisoning involving ..." RTHC-08183. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/conrad-2026-united-states-healthcare-encounters
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.