Education · the people
Who uses cannabis?
Cannabis users aren’t a stereotype — they’re your neighbors, coworkers, and grandparents. People of every age, profession, and political party: grandparents easing arthritis, veterans managing PTSD, nurses, teachers, retirees, and weekend hikers. The data is non-partisan, the support is bipartisan, and the real picture is far more mainstream — and more positive — than the old clichés.
Verified as of Jun 28, 2026. Figures are best treated as estimates — see the note below.
It’s for all kinds of people
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Chronic-pain patients
Adults living with persistent pain — by far the most common reason people qualify.
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Older adults
Seniors managing arthritis, sleep, and chronic illness — the fastest-growing group.
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Veterans
Service members easing PTSD and pain, often after other treatments fall short.
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Serious illness
People easing the nausea, pain, and appetite loss of cancer, MS, and end-stage conditions.
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People who can’t sleep
About one in ten U.S. adults reaches for cannabis as a sleep aid.
By the numbers
- ~3–4 million Registered U.S. medical patients (a known undercount) source
- 4.5× Growth in registered patients, 2016 → 2020 source
- ~88% Americans who support legal medical access (Pew, 2026) source
- ~70% Support legalizing cannabis overall (Gallup, record high) source
- ~1 in 10 US adults currently use cannabis as a sleep aid (NSF, 2026) source
What patients use it for
Share of patient-reported qualifying conditions, U.S. (2022).
Annals of Internal Medicine (2022)
Worth knowing
Seniors are the fastest-growing group
Past-month cannabis use among adults 65+ rose to about 7% in 2023, up from under 5% in 2021 — a striking jump concentrated among older adults managing chronic illness.
Veterans turn to it often
About 22% of veterans report using cannabis for a medical condition, and among veteran users roughly 41% describe their use as medical — about double the rate of adults overall.
Read the numbers with care
State registries aren’t standardized and some states (like California) have no mandatory registry, so every national total is an estimate — and the true number using cannabis medically is higher than any registered count.
Bottom line: a large, growing, and remarkably ordinary cross-section of Americans uses cannabis as medicine — and about nine in ten support their right to do so. If you think it might help you, talk with a licensed Georgia provider.