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Rhiannon12866

(222,238 posts)
Sat Jul 15, 2017, 03:34 AM Jul 2017

Medical marijuana patient contests driving ban

A Vermont man has challenged a state ruling that denies him the right to drive because he uses medical marijuana.

David Ballard, 55, of Milton, lost his license for 90 days last year after being charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, court records show.

The criminal charge was dropped, and Ballard, who suffers from ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, successfully completed an alcohol-education program, followed by counseling at the Howard Center.

Through it all, Ballard continued his prescribed use of cannabis, which he says eases pain and anxiety symptoms of his degenerative nerve disease.

“That was approved by the state — and now the state is telling me ‘no,’” Ballard said Friday before his hearing at Vermont Superior Court in Burlington.


More: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2017/07/14/medical-marijuana-patient-contests-driving-ban/476994001/



Milton resident David Ballard, right, talks with his lawyer, Norman Blais on Friday outside Vermont Superior Court in Burlington. David Ballard is fighting a Vermont Department of Health decision to withhold his driver's license due to his use of medical marijuana to treat ALS symptoms. Photographed on July 14, 2017. (Photo: JOEL BANNER BAIRD/FREE PRESS)

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Medical marijuana patient contests driving ban (Original Post) Rhiannon12866 Jul 2017 OP
Somebody has to do it. CanSocDem Jul 2017 #1
D.o.T.'s N.T.S.B: Drug and Alcohol Crash Risk: A Case-Control Study kristopher Jul 2017 #2

kristopher

(29,798 posts)
2. D.o.T.'s N.T.S.B: Drug and Alcohol Crash Risk: A Case-Control Study
Sat Jul 15, 2017, 03:30 PM
Jul 2017

(REFORMATTED FOR CLARITY -K)

Abstract
This study used a “case-control” design to estimate the risk of crashes involving drivers using drugs, alcohol or both. Data was collected in Virginia Beach, Virginia, for 20 months.

The study obtained biological measures on more than 3,000 crash drivers at the scenes of the crashes, and 6,000 control (comparison) drivers. Control drivers were recruited one week after the crashes at the same time, day of week, location, and direction of travel as the crash-involved drivers.

Data included 10,221 breath samples, 9,285 oral fluid samples, and 1,764 blood samples. Oral fluid and blood samples were screened and confirmed for the presence of alcohol and drugs.

The crash risk associated with alcohol and other drugs was estimated using odds ratios that indicate the probability of acrash occurring over the probability that such an event does not occur.

If a variable (alcohol and/or drugs) is not associated with a crash, the odds ratio for that variable will be 1.00. A higher or lower number indicates a stronger relationship between the probability of a crash occurring and the presence of that variable (alcohol and/or drugs in the driver).

Confidence intervals (CIs) of an odds ratio indicate the range in which the true value lies—with 95 percent confidence.


Alcohol: Alcohol was the largest contributor to crash risk.

The unadjusted crash risk estimates for alcohol indicated drivers with a breath alcohol concentrations (BrACs) of .05 grams per 210 liters (g/210L) are 2.05 times more likely to crash than drivers with no alcohol.

For drivers with BrACs of .08 g/210L, the unadjusted relative risk of crashing is 3.98 times that of drivers with no alcohol.

When adjusted for age and gender, drivers with BrACs of .05 g/210L are 2.07 times more likely to crash than drivers with no alcohol.

The adjusted crash risk for drivers at .08 g/210L is 3.93 times that of drivers with no alcohol.


Drugs: Unadjusted drug odds ratio estimates indicated a significant increase in crash risk.

For the active ingredient in marijuana, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), this yielded an unadjusted odds ratio of 1.25. However, after adjusting for gender, age, race/ethnicity, and alcohol, there was no indication that any drug significantly contributed to crash risk.

The adjusted odds ratios for THC were 1.00, 95 percent CI [.83, 1.22], indicating no increased or decreased crash risk.

Odds ratios for
-antidepressants were .86, 95 percent CI [.56, 1.33];
-narcotic analgesics were 1.17, 95% percent
-drugs as an overall category were .99, 95 percent CI [.84, 1.18], and
-prescription and over-the-counter medications were 1.02, 95 percent CI [.83, 1.26].


Alcohol and Drugs: Analyses found no statistically significant interaction effects when drivers were positive for both alcohol and drugs.

Although initial analyses suggested that the combination of alcohol and other drugs were contributors to increased crash risk, additional analyses adjusting for other risk factors indicated no significant effect.

When both alcohol and other drugs were consumed, alcohol alone was associated with crash risk.


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Please help share this information. Based on MJ traces in his blood test, my son-in-law is doing 6 months on a felony conviction at Maricopa County Jail for having smoked medicinal marijuana 5 days before driving to a park.

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