Cannabis use prevalence among Baby Boomers before and after implementation of recreational retail sales in California

BACKGROUND: As of 2021, 21 US states and territories allowed recreational cannabis use. Although previous research has identified an overall increase in prevalence of cannabis use after legalization, it has been less clear how this change will affect different parts of the population, including older adults, and specifically Baby Boomers, born 1946–1964, given their historically higher rates of use and a higher prevalence of comorbid conditions that could be either exacerbated or addressed by cannabis use. In this study we assessed whether implementation of recreational retail sales in California was associated with increased prevalence of cannabis use among Baby Boomers. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of cannabis use prevalence one year before and after the implementation of recreational retail sales in California using the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), a statewide public health surveillance dataset. RESULTS: We found that cannabis use prevalence did not change among Baby Boomers but increased among non-Baby Boomers. Most of the factors found to be predictive of cannabis use in past research did not predict cannabis use among Baby Boomers. CONCLUSIONS: Baby Boomers did not change their consumption of cannabis in the first year after opening the retail market, despite previous research suggesting that cannabis consumption increases with access, and most previously identified predictors of use did not identify people who use cannabis in this generation. Further research is needed to determine whether these effects persist over time. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13011-022-00443-9.