Illinois teens’ marijuana use lower near medical dispensaries; study – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WTVO) — A recent University of Illinois (U of I) study found that cannabis use is lower in teens who live in ZIP codes with medical dispensaries.

About 18% of teens reported using cannabis in the past 12 months, compared to about 22% of people living in ZIP codes without them.

Data was collected between January-April 2018. That was before the state legalized marijuana for recreational use, but using the drug for medical reasons was legal.

“Even though we’re not seeing an immediate increase in these ZIP codes where we have cannabis dispensaries, medical cannabis dispensaries, that does not mean that if we proliferate dispensaries that eventually use won’t rise,” said Doug Smith, director of the U of I Center for Prevention Research and Development.

Illinois had more than 50 medical cannabis dispensaries when data was collected for the study. That number has more than doubled.