According to a working paper from researchers at three universities, state medical marijuana laws could lead to an increase in the chances that people will file Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) claims.
The researchers, from Temple University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Cincinnati, found that after the passage of a medical marijuana law, SSDI claims rose 9.9% while SSDI benefits rose 2.6%.
The researchers used data from the Current Population Survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the report was distributed by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The researchers also wrote that “expanding marijuana access has negative spillover effects to costly social programs that disincentive work.” They studied the effect that sate laws on medical marijuana had on workers’ compensation claims. While they did not find anything statistically signficant, they did say the data suggestion that laws do in general cause an increase.
