41 states have legalized the medical use of cannabis, representing over 80% of the entire United States. Below is a breakdown of all 41 states, including details on when the state legalized the medicine, when the first dispensary opened, possession limits and more.
Alabama
Year legalized: 2021.
Year first dispensary opened: The first dispensary is expected
Possession limits: up to 70 daily dosages for a registered patient; usable forms exclude raw flower, smoking, vaping, and standard edibles.
Tax rate: Alabama’s statute imposes a 9% excise tax on retail medical-cannabis sales, plus an annual medical-cannabis privilege tax.
Qualifying conditions: closed list, including cancer-related cachexia or nausea, depression or anxiety related to terminal illness, epilepsy, panic disorder, PTSD, autism spectrum disorder, MS/spinal-cord spasticity, terminal illness, Tourette syndrome, and chronic or intractable pain when conventional and opiate therapy is ineffective or contraindicated.
Anything else notable: the program has been unusually delayed by licensing litigation.
Alaska
Year legalized: 1998.
Year first dispensary opened: none; Alaska’s medical law did not create medical dispensaries, and later adult-use retail began separately in 2016.
Possession limits: generally 1 ounce usable cannabis and 6 plants, not more than 3 mature.
Tax rate: no medical-dispensary tax structure applies because there is no medical-dispensary system.
Qualifying conditions: classic closed debilitating-condition list, including cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, chronic pain, and seizure/spasticity-related conditions.
Anything else notable: Alaska remains one of the clearest examples of a patient/caregiver-plus-home-grow model rather than a dedicated medical-retail model.
Arizona
Year legalized: 2010.
Year first dispensary opened: 2012.
Possession limits: 2.5 ounces of usable marijuana; if the patient is cultivation-authorized because the residence is far from a dispensary, up to 12 plants.
Tax rate: no medical-specific excise was identified in the reviewed sources; Arizona’s adult-use excise does not apply to medical sales.
Qualifying conditions: closed list, including cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, hepatitis C, ALS, Crohn’s disease, agitation of Alzheimer’s disease, and severe pain, severe nausea, seizures, persistent muscle spasms, PTSD, and other department-added debilitating conditions.
Anything else notable: Arizona still preserves a meaningful medical advantage over adult-use through higher possession limits and cultivation access for some patients.
Arkansas
Year legalized: 2016.
Year first dispensary opened: 2019; the Arkansas Department of Health says the first dispensary opened on May 10, 2019.
Possession limits: 2.5 ounces every 14 days; no home cultivation.
Tax rate: Arkansas has ordinary sales tax on retail sales and a 4% special privilege tax on transfers of medical cannabis.
Qualifying conditions: closed list, including cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, ALS, Tourette’s syndrome, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, PTSD, severe arthritis, fibromyalgia, peripheral neuropathy, intractable pain, severe nausea, seizures, severe muscle spasms, Alzheimer’s disease, and cachexia.
Anything else notable: Arkansas allows visiting-patient cards, uses a strict registry-card model, and has one of the clearer official FAQ systems for conditions and limits.
Hellbound and Down 