Carson Addiction Treatment Centers

In 2017, the Los Angeles County city of Carson, California, passed legislation that would allow the growing, manufacture, and sale of recreational marijuana. This included licensed delivery operations and additional restrictions to personal cultivation of these plants.¹

The state of California passed legislation legalizing recreational marijuana in 2016 but allowed individual cities across the large state to manage their own rules and regulations around how this drug would be sold. So some cities have passed legislation banning recreational and even medical marijuana use, but Carson is allowing residents to grow their own or have it delivered to their home.¹

Although marijuana is legal in Carson, like alcohol or tobacco, it is still a drug that can be abuses. Many people use marijuana—in fact, it is the second-most abused drug, after alcohol, across much of the United States. And in Los Angeles County, 11.1% of people ages 12 and older report using marijuana. This is slightly higher than the national average of 10.7% but lower than the California average of 12.5%.²

In the years leading up to marijuana becoming legal across Los Angeles County, fewer people entered treatment for the substance: between 2011 and 2015, treatment admissions for marijuana abuse began to drop. It is possible that because the substance was becoming more popular, more people began to believe that it was harmless.³ However, the addictive qualities are evident and should be treated in those who exhibit problematic behaviors around its use.

1. Daily Breeze. (2017). Commercial Marijuana Businesses Get a Green Light in Carson.
2. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Substance Use and Mental Disorders in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Anna MSA. 2005-2010.
3. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2015). Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) 2005-2015.