LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – For today’s Good Question, Tammy asks: If I get a medical marijuana card, will I have to stop my narcotic pain medication?
That’s a question that only you and your healthcare providers can answer.
And, it’s a conversation state law says should happen.
The law legalizing medicinal cannabis in Kentucky has a definition for “bona fide practitioner-patient relationship” and it has a few different steps.
One of those is to have “advised the patient of the possible risks and side effects associated with the use of medicinal cannabis, including possible interactions between medicinal cannabis and any other drug or medication that the patient is taking at that time.”
Research shows that cannabis can interact with different medications in different ways. With opioids it can intensify the effect.
One study from 2020 in California followed adults with chronic back pain who used opioids, and started taking cannabis. Half of the participants in that study were able to stop using opioids, one third were able to lower their dosage.
So you’ll want to make sure you talk to your medical team before you make any potential changes.
If you have a Good Question you’d like us to try to answer, send it to goodquestion@wkyt.com.
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