Medical marijuana patients in Arizona bought a record 29 tons of cannabis products in 2016, a 53% increase over the 19 tons that were purchased in 2015, according to a report from the state Department of Health Services.
The sales surge could be attributed to an increase in medical marijuana patients. The program had 114,439 patients registered at the end of 2016 compared with 88,500 at the end of 2015. That’s a patient increase of 29%, according to Phoenix New Times.
Nearly 82% of patients, or 93,447, had registered for the program because of chronic pain, according to the report.
The report also found that the biggest proportion of patients, 24%, came from the 18-30 age, but that also means that 76% of patients are older than 31. In terms of gender, the report found that men accounted for 64% of the patient population, compared with 36% of women.
