American Insurance Association issued the following announcement on Nov. 20.
With voters in five additional states passing ballot measures to legalize marijuana for recreational and medical use, the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) reminds policymakers and drivers to make auto safety a top priority.
This month, New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, and South Dakota passed recreational marijuana ballot initiatives and Mississippi passed a medical marijuana measure. Insurers remind drivers that any kind of impairment while driving, including marijuana, is reckless and illegal. APCIA also is urging public policymakers to invest in new research to detect marijuana-impairment on the road and develop consistent testing and impairment standards.
“Too many drivers are distracted behind the wheel, and with 35 states and Washington, D.C. now allowing some form of legal marijuana use, there is reason to accelerate concern for potential dangers on the roads,” said Christy Thiems, senior director of policy and research at APCIA. “We need additional public education of the dangers of driving under the influence of marijuana as well as more research in order to develop a method of measurement for marijuana impairment and an objective marijuana-impaired driving standard.”
Marijuana use can slow reaction times and interfere with coordination, perception, judgement, and other critical abilities necessary for safe driving. Currently, there is no objective standard for cannabis impairment and no reliable test to measure it. Studies by AAA have shown that reliable tests are needed to determine impairment limits at roadside stops.
Since 2012, fifteen states and Washington, D.C. have legalized recreational marijuana for adults over the age of 21. Thirty-five states and Washington, D.C. have legalized medical marijuana. An increase in the frequency of crashes coincides with the decriminalization of marijuana in many states. Research from IIHS found that crashes increased as much as six percent in Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington after legalizing marijuana, compared with neighboring states that had not legalized marijuana. With a majority of Americans now having some form of access to marijuana, whether medically or recreationally, it is imperative that drivers understand the deadly potential of operating a vehicle while under the influence of substances.
Original source can be found here.
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