Murphy says medical marijuana program adds 25K patients

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - New Jersey's medical marijuana program has seen a 150 percent increase in the number of patients participating.

That's according to Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy's office, who said Thursday that the program has added 25,500 patients since he took office in January 2018. The program now has more than 42,528 patients.

The news comes just after Murphy and Democratic legislative leaders announced an agreement on legislation to legalize recreational marijuana.

It's the latest expansion of the medical program under Murphy, who said in October it doubled the number of patients from 17,000 to 34,000.

Murphy added five conditions to the list of covered illnesses last March, including anxiety, migraines, Tourette's syndrome and two types of chronic pain.

This year the state added opioid-use disorder as an approved illness under the program.