Status: Legal

History:

2013 - Medical cannabis legalised
2016 - Possession of recreational cannabis decriminalised to a misdemeanour crime
2018 - Medical cannabis laws liberalised (patients to no longer undergo criminal background checks or be fingerprinted. More conditions were added to the qualifying conditions list in 2019)
2020 - Recreational cannabis legalised

Policy Framework:

• Medical cannabis patients must have a qualifying condition to obtain medical cannabis legally (prior to recreational cannabis being legalised in 2020);
• Medical cannabis patients must have a recommendation from a doctor before they can obtain medical cannabis;
• Under the new legislation, over 700,000 residents of Illinois will be eligible for expungement of cannabis possession criminal records;
• “Social equity” dispensary license applicants can meet criteria to obtain a special license aimed to benefit historically disenfranchised communities;
• Individuals must be 21 years or older to purchase, possess, or consume cannabis;
• Only state-registered medical cannabis patients may grow their own cannabis at home with a limit of five plants per household;
• No consuming cannabis in a public place;
• There are currently 55 dispensaries in the state of Illinois;
• Possession limit of 30g (1oz) of cannabis flower;
• There are an estimated 39,808 registered medical cannabis patients in Illinois.
  
  Source: Norml

Outcomes:

• Between 2005 and 2017, cannabis use disorder in people over the age of 12 decreased from 1.7% to 1.5%;
• In 2018, sales of medical marijuana reached $US91.1 million.

Source: https://crime-data-explorer.fr.cloud.gov/explorer/state/illinois/crime