2/14/13 - A recent report by the state indicates that Livingston County has only a fraction of the number of medical marijuana users and caregivers found in neighboring counties. The industry provided the state with $9.8 million last year, resulting in a net profit of $6.3 million. The 2008 Medical Marijuana Act requires the creation of a yearly report on the number of marijuana cardholders. Oakland County had the second-highest number of users in the state with more than 11,000 while Genesee County placed fourth with more than 8,200. Livingston County had a much lower number of users at 1,867. However, an analysis of the numbers reveals that Livingston and Oakland Counties have roughly the same number of medical marijuana users per capita. Based on 2010 census numbers, cardholders make up 1.03% of the population in Livingston and .91% of the population in Oakland. In Genesee County, however, medical marijuana users make up almost 2% of the population, or almost twice the rate of marijuana users in Livingston. Ingham and Washtenaw Counties fell in the middle of the scale, with 1.74% and 1.29% respectively. The rate of medical marijuana caregivers per capita in each county follows the same trend. (TD)
↧