Health Canada releases new data on cannabis use; COVID-19 has had impact

More than half of cannabis users in Canada use it three days a month or less, while a majority of users obtain it legally.

On Dec. 21, Health Canada published the results of its 2020 Canadian Cannabis Survey. Results of the survey provide a snapshot of Canadians’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviours towards cannabis and its use. Data were collected from April 30 to June 22, 2020.

On Oct. 17, 2018, the Cannabis Act came into force, providing a strict national framework for controlling the production, distribution, sale and possession of cannabis in Canada.

Other key findings show that:

• The COVID-19 pandemic has had some impacts on cannabis use. People who used cannabis in the past 12 months were asked if their cannabis use had changed due the pandemic — 56 per cent reported using the same amount, while 22 per cent reported using more and 22 per cent reported using less.

• Smoking remains the most common method of consuming cannabis, but it has declined while eating cannabis products has increased since 2019.

• Almost 8 in 10 Canadians feel they have access to trustworthy information to make informed decisions about their cannabis use. An increase from 71 per cent in 2019 to 77 per cent in 2020.
• Driving after cannabis use has decreased among those who reported past 12-month cannabis use, as compared to 2019 results. Twenty-two per cent of those who use cannabis drove within two hours of smoking or vapourizing cannabis in their lifetime and 13 per cent reported driving within four hours of orally ingesting cannabis in their lifetime.

The results of the 2020 Canadian Cannabis Survey are based on online responses from approximately 11,000 respondents aged 16 years and over across all provinces and territories.