Georgia’s medical cannabis program is experiencing its fastest growth since it launched a decade ago, with the number of registered patients increasing by more than 22 percent in just over a month following new state law changes.

According to state data, Georgia’s medical cannabis registry grew from 36,595 patients in late June to 44,854 by early August after the Putting Georgia’s Patients First Act took effect on July 1. Gov. Brian Kemp signed the legislation into law in May.

The new law expands access by replacing the previous THC percentage limit with a possession limit of 12,000 milligrams of THC. It also adds lupus and irritable bowel syndrome to the list of qualifying medical conditions and removes the requirement that cancer and AIDS patients have severe or end-stage disease before becoming eligible.

While smoking marijuana remains illegal under Georgia’s medical cannabis law, patients may now obtain cannabis flower intended for vaporization through licensed dispensaries.

Industry leaders say the increase reflects growing awareness of the program and expect enrollment to continue rising. Officials estimate Georgia could eventually have hundreds of thousands of eligible patients if participation reaches levels seen in other states.

The expanding patient base could also lead to more retail dispensary licenses. State law allows an additional retail license to be issued for every 10,000 new registered patients. Georgia currently permits six cultivation licenses, 15 retail licenses and one independent cannabis testing laboratory.

The rapid growth has also created longer processing times for patient applications, with approvals now taking up to four weeks instead of about one week.

Georgia also remains the first state to allow independent pharmacies to dispense certain medical cannabis products. However, pharmacies are still limited to low-THC oils, tinctures, capsules, lotions and patches. Higher-potency products, including vaporizer cartridges and cannabis flower, remain available only through state-licensed dispensaries.