D. Mark Anderson, Benjamin Hansen, Daniel I. Rees
Although policymakers and law enforcement officials argue that medical marijuana laws (MMLs) “send the wrong message” to young people, previous studies have produced no evidence of a causal relationship between MMLs and marijuana use among teens. Using data from the national and state Youth Risk Behavior Surveys, the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, and the Treatment Episode Data Set, we revisit this relationship. Our results are not consistent with the hypothesis that legalization of medical marijuana leads to increased marijuana use among teenagers.