The Data
The numbers
Every figure on this page comes from the State of Connecticut or the State of Maine. Sources are listed under each chart.
Connecticut medical cannabis registrants, January 2023 – July 2026
Medical cannabis patients per 1,000 residents
| Connecticut | Maine | |
|---|---|---|
| Population (2024 est.) | 3,675,069 | 1,405,012 |
| Medical patients / certifications | 30,505 | 112,547 |
| Per 1,000 residents | 8.3 | 80.1 |
| Registered caregivers | 2,591 | 1,539 |
| Latest annual trend | falling | rising 1.9% |
| Registration fee revenue | $0 | $2,519,699 (FY2025) |
Read this comparison carefully
Maine reports patient certifications; Connecticut reports registered patients. The two units are close but not identical, so treat this as an order-of-magnitude difference rather than an exact ratio. The direction of the gap is not in question. We raise the caveat ourselves rather than leave it to be found.
One figure runs against the obvious objection: Connecticut has roughly six times as many registered caregivers per patient as Maine does. There is no caregiver shortage here. The bill activates a population the state has already registered.
Approved patient certifications by age, 2022-Q4 through 2026-Q1
| Age band | Certifications | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 4,682 | 3.7% |
| 25–34 | 17,408 | 13.8% |
| 35–44 | 26,523 | 21.0% |
| 45–54 | 24,608 | 19.5% |
| 55–64 | 25,951 | 20.6% |
| 65–74 | 20,857 | 16.5% |
| 75–84 | 5,287 | 4.2% |
| 85+ | 740 | 0.6% |
Top qualifying conditions. Post-traumatic stress disorder 59,205 · Chronic pain of at least six months 31,676 · Cancer 11,315 · Chronic neuropathic pain 6,422 · Intractable headache syndromes 5,157.
What a caregiver license would raise
Connecticut currently collects $0 in caregiver registration fees. Move the sliders to test the assumptions yourself.
The default values are the central estimate: roughly 855 licensed caregivers at a weighted average fee of $511, producing about $437,000 a year. The realistic range is $265,000 to $662,000. The fee tiers are Maine's published schedule, $240 to $1,500.
This is gross fee revenue, not net. Medical cannabis is exempt from the sales, excise and municipal taxes under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-412(120), so patients returning to the medical program reduce other state tax receipts. That offset is modeled in the fiscal materials on the For Legislators page.
For context, Maine's own program is not self-funding: fee revenue of $2,519,699 in FY2025 against $2,897,043 in expenses, a deficit of $377,344. We are not claiming this measure pays for itself.