The State of Alaska created an information web portal for marijuana regulations. It explains the law as it now stands, what is acceptable and what is not. It created a 30-second cartoon video that says it’s illegal to drive while under the influence of marijuana, though exact measurements of where driving impairment starts is not hard science.
The amended guidelines state that marijuana affects people differently and offers “a few simple rules of thumb.” The more THC a person consumes, the greater the impairment, and the effects of edibles are slower to develop and last longer. Though a person may feel fine to drive after two or three hours, impairment can last much longer, and getting high diminishes judgment. Using alcohol and marijuana together results in greater driving impairment.
Alaska Chief Medical Officer Jay Butler’s big concerns are the incredible variability of THC concentrations and of users’ tolerances. Another concern for Butler is the time it takes to reach peak blood-level concentrations from edibles, which can take as long as four hours after ingestion.
Unlike alcohol, which has established scientific tests to determine blood-alcohol content, determining if drivers are illegally impaired by marijuana is a challenge that currently relies mostly on officer discretion. Defining the acceptable level of THC in blood and how to test for the compound have not been resolved.
“The bottom line is, don’t drive stoned. Definitely don’t drive drunk and stoned,” Butler said.
