Marijuana Involved in 84% of Teens’ Substance-Related ER Visits, National Study Finds
A WashU study of more than 1.3 million patients found marijuana in most substance-related emergencies among teens and young adults, while alcohol dominated among older adults.
When teens end up in the emergency room or hospital for a substance-related problem, marijuana is usually part of the picture. A national study of marijuana ER visits, published Nov. 4 in The American Journal of Psychiatry, found cannabis involved in 84 percent of those cases among 16- to 18-year-olds.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis analyzed insurance records for more than 1.3 million people ages 16 to 64. Each had at least one substance-related emergency encounter between 2016 and 2023. The data covered more than 5 million encounters across commercial insurance and Medicaid.
Smart Approaches to Marijuana President and CEO Kevin Sabet said the following: “Among teens who land in the ER for drugs or alcohol, more than eight in ten cases involve marijuana. That’s what the commercialization of high-potency THC looks like in our emergency rooms.” Sabet went on to add, “While these numbers are devastating, they are not surprising. It’s time for politicians on both sides to take the harms of commercial marijuana seriously, or else we can expect more data like this.”
Marijuana ER visits highest among the youngest patients
The 84 percent figure for teens was the highest of any age group. Among adults 55 to 64, it was 19 percent.
Get stories like this every Friday
The week's drug policy news in one email, every claim sourced. Join tens of thousands of readers.
Young adults 19 to 24 saw the fastest growth. Their share of encounters involving marijuana rose about 1.8 percentage points per year. The teen share climbed about 0.8 points per year, while older groups barely moved.
The researchers also flagged rising marijuana-related hospital admissions involving psychosis and severe vomiting among younger patients.
Alcohol ran the other way by age. One in three teens with a substance-related visit had an alcohol encounter, compared with 70 percent of adults 55 to 64.
What the marijuana data does and does not show
Dr. Kevin Y. Xu, an assistant professor of psychiatry at WashU Medicine who led the research team, said cannabis use is trending up while alcohol use is trending down. “But until now, we haven’t had high-quality data tracking what kind of use is causing immediate harm,” he said.
Xu also pointed to today’s high-potency products, which make it easy to consume far more THC than users could in the past. He said popular media often oversimplifies and underestimates the risks of cannabis use.
The findings fit a broader pattern. The CDC recently counted nearly 200,000 ER visits for cannabis hyperemesis syndrome, with the highest rates among 15- to 24-year-olds. In Massachusetts, ER visits for marijuana poisoning among children 6 to 12 rose more than sevenfold after retail sales began.
No state claims to sell recreational marijuana to anyone under 21. In the emergency room, it is already the substance most often on a teenager’s chart.
Get The Drug Report every Friday
One free email every Friday: the week's drug policy news, sourced and explained. Read by tens of thousands of people who write, enforce and cover the policy. Unsubscribe anytime.