New study suggests marijuana use in Colorado is increasing

Colorado is now the state with the second-highest percentage of regular marijuana users, according to a study by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Rhode Island still beats out Colorado for the highest percentage of residents who report having used weed in the month before the survey.

Colorado's results, which averaged two-year periods of responses, found that 10.4 percent of residents older than age 12 used marijuana at least once in the month before the 2011-12 survey; the 2012-13 data found that 12.7 percent of Colorado residents had used pot.

However, because the survey did not include results from 2014 — when recreational marijuana shops opened, The Associated Press notes — some experts doubt the study can be used to analyze longer-term effects of legalization.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up