Cannabis legislation in the US has been a rollercoaster. Over the last few decades, cannabis legislation around the world has been constantly changing. In the United States the legislation around cannabis use is particularly confusing. At a federal level cannabis is illegal, however, many individual states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) have taken steps to legalise cannabis for medical and/or recreational reasons. This blog post explores the trends in self-reported cannabis use in the US from 1979 to 2022, against the backdrop of these evolving policies.
A Brief History of Cannabis Policy in the US
To understand the trends, it’s crucial to look at the history of cannabis policy in the US. We can broadly divide it into four periods:
- Early Liberalisation (1970s): Despite the Marihuana Tax Act (1937) and the Controlled Substances Act (1970), 11 states decriminalised or lessened penalties for cannabis offences.
- The “War on Drugs” (1980-1992): The Reagan-Bush era saw a conservative shift with stricter drug policies.
- State-Led Liberalisation (1993-2008): This period focused on legalising medical cannabis.
- Federal Non-Interference (2008-Present): More states legalised both medical and recreational cannabis, starting with Colorado in 2014.
Today, 38 states and D.C. allow the use of cannabis for medical reasons. Furthermore, 24 states and D.C. have legalised recreational cannabis and a further seven states have decriminalised its use. In the recent 2024 elections, voters in Nebraska supported the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal use. This changing landscape has significantly impacted cannabis consumption patterns.
Cannabis Use: The Numbers Tell a Story
A recent study analysed data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) and the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) to understand how cannabis use has changed over time. Here are some key findings:
- Decline During “War on Drugs”: Self-reported cannabis use fell sharply during the 1980s, reaching its lowest point in 1992.
- Resurgence and Growth: Use partially recovered by 2008 and then surged, especially heavier use.
- Significant Increase (2008-2022): Past-year cannabis use increased by 120%, and daily or near-daily use rose 15-fold from 0.9 million to 17.7 million users.
Cannabis vs. Alcohol: A Shifting Dynamic
Interestingly, the study also compared cannabis use with alcohol use:
- Daily or Near-Daily Use Flip-Flop: In 1992, daily or near-daily alcohol users outnumbered daily or near-daily cannabis users by 10 to 1. By 2022, this had reversed.
- Frequency of Use: A higher percentage of cannabis users now report daily or near-daily use compared to alcohol users.
Understanding the Data
Worldwide, including in the US, far more people consume alcohol than cannabis. Nonetheless, the findings of this analysis of self-reported cannabis and alcohol use show cannabis use is increasing in the US.
While these findings highlight a significant increase in cannabis use, particularly high-frequency use, it’s important to consider some limitations:
- Social Acceptability: Increased social acceptance of cannabis may have led to more people willing to self-report its use, compared to eras of prohibition, inflating the size of the change.
- Correlation vs. Causation: While the trends seem to mirror policy changes, this study doesn’t establish a direct causal link.
Despite these limitations, the study clearly shows a considerable increase in cannabis use in the US, coinciding with evolving cannabis policies.