Report Claims Only Six Percent of Utahn Adults Consume Cannabis
[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]O[/dropcap]n Jan. 14, a report was released from the Utah Department of Health claiming that merely six percent of adults in Utah admitted to consuming cannabis during the last month. Local media outlets, however, were flooded with comments about the inaccuracy of the report.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that adults were surveyed during 2017—the most recent data available—and asked questions about cannabis consumption. Adults 18-34 were the group most likely to admit consuming cannabis. The majority of Utahns use cannabis recreationally at 42.3 percent, while 30.8 percent used cannabis both recreationally and medically, and 26.9 percent used cannabis for medical reasons only.
“However, the reason for using marijuana varied distinctly for those who also reported chronic pain, arthritis, or 7+ days of poor mental health within the past month. Users who reported chronic pain and users with arthritis mostly used marijuana only for medical reasons (56.2% and 48.0%). Users who reported seven or more poor mental health days during the past month reported use more evenly across all categories,” the report stated.
Salt Lake County cannabis consumption was pegged at 8.2 percent and Summit County was home to the highest cannabis consumption rate in Utah with 10.5 percent. Utah County, which is often called “Happy Valley” because of the heavy influence of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, was home to the lowest rates of cannabis consumption at only 2.6 percent.
On Nov. 6, 2018, Utah voters approved Proposition 2, legalizing medical cannabis, but the bill was quickly replaced by the Utah State Legislature with a “compromise” bill that restricted provisions in the original bill. Even though 53 percent of Utah voters approved medical cannabis, their voice stands no chance against the Utah State Legislature. The compromise bill is now being targeted by several lawsuits.
