Source: Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities
A new surveillance report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides a comprehensive overview of historical trends in marijuana use and associated public perceptions and attitudes from 2002-14.
The surveillance report finds that there has been a significant rise in the current use of marijuana among people aged 26 and older with a 65% increase from 2002-14, the highest increase reported. The surveillance report also noted that in 2014, 2.5 million Americans aged 12 or older reported using marijuana for the first time – an average of 7,000 new users each day.
The surveillance report examines other key behavioral health aspects of the impact of marijuana on our nation, including how Americans got the marijuana they used the last time, marijuana dependence and abuse, and the perceptions of maximum legal penalties for the possession of marijuana in their state of residence for the first offense possession of an ounce or less of marijuana for their own use.