People have grown and consumed the female flowering cannabis plant, also known as marijuana, since the beginning of recorded history (Armentano 2). Marijuana has been used for medicinal purposes starting in the Eastern Han Dynasty in China as early as AD 25. The Chinese used the plant for rheumatic pain, malaria, constipation and disorders of the female reproductive system (Leung 453). Today the same plant is used for both medicinal purposes and recreational use. The Controlled Substance Act, established in 1970, under the US Federal Law classified marijuana as a schedule I drug and therefore penalizes anyone who possesses, dispenses, or prescribes the drug (Leung 453). Starting in 1996, 28 states, the District of Columbia and Guam have amended …show more content…
Not only will the government make a huge profit from all of the sales but it helps many people around the community with jobs. With each new medical cannabis store that opens, 75 new jobs for open for people in that community. The economic effects of medical marijuana can only be studied in states that have legalized the use of the drug. Two states that the studies have been conducted in include Colorado and Washington. Colorado legalized the use of marijuana for recreational and medical use in 2012. The state charges a recreational use tax of 35.05% on each marijuana purchase (Goltz 131). Medical use is also tax, but not at such a high level. Washington also taxes the sale of marijuana at a higher rate of 37% per purchase. The money raised through the taxes are used for both federal and state programs. Some of the money benefits schools, drug prevention programs, and medical research. In 2014, the first year marijuana was legal in Colorado, retailers sold $213,414,440 worth of marijuana (Goltz 134). The sale of marijuana is becoming such a mainstream that as of 2017 people can now invest in the medical marijuana industry. The sale of the drug positively affects not only the state and federal government but puts more money in the hand of the everyday