WPRO News and the Associated Press

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – A government study says Rhode Islanders use marijuana and illicit drugs at the highest rates in the United States.

The Providence Journal reports that the National Survey on Drug Use and Health says 14 percent of those 12 and older used marijuana in the past month, up from 13 percent the previous year. Rhode Island also was No. 1 for those who reported having used marijuana in the previous year: 20 percent.

The survey is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an agency of the U.S. Public Health Service.

Rhode Island is among 23 states that permit the sale of medical marijuana for licensed patients.

Rhode Islanders also led the nation, about 4.3 percent, in consuming illegal drugs, excluding marijuana, in the month before being surveyed.