A growing literature has examined whether recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) have an association with health-related outcomes. However, it is still unclear whether RMLs is associated with alcohol consumption. In this paper, we study retail scanner data on alcoholic beverage purchases across US counties from 2006 to 2019 to investigate the relationship between RMLs and alcohol consumption. Using the variation in the timing of RML enactment across states, we identify a complementary effect between marijuana and alcohol. These results remain robust with different specifications for RMLs in treated states.

A growing literature has examined whether the 2016 CDC guideline in general has an effect on opioid-related outcomes. However, little is known about its impact on non-cancer chronic pain (NCCP) patients who are the main target of the guideline. In this paper we study the effect of the 2016 CDC guideline on prescribing opioid to NCCP patients. Using a difference-in-differences event study design, we find that the guideline in general does not significantly reduce the rate of prescribing opioid. In contrast, we find stronger effects after the guideline on reducing opioid prescription when either non-opioid pain medication or non-pharmacotherapy is given as recommended by the guideline. Our findings highlight that the guideline does have effects on opioid drug prescribing, but these effects differ substantially under different heterogeneity.