Pot, opioids now rival alcohol as factor in driver deaths

(HealthDay)—Pot and opioids have become almost as deadly as booze for drivers, a new report shows.

Forty-four percent of drivers killed in crashes tested positive for drugs in 2016, up from 28 percent 10 years prior, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).

Among drivers killed in car crashes in 2016 who tested positive for drugs, 38 percent had some form of marijuana in their system, 16 percent had opioids and 4 percent used both, the researchers found.

“Too many people operate under the false belief that marijuana or opioids don’t impair their ability to drive, or even that these drugs make them safer drivers,” Jonathan Adkins, GHSA executive director, said in an association news release.

“Busting this myth requires states to expand their impaired driving campaigns to include marijuana and opioids along with alcohol, to show drivers that impairment is…