Illinois approved about 400 new patient applications for medical marijuana during March, bringing the total to 2,000 patients with complete paperwork.
The Illinois Department of Public Health released the updated numbers Wednesday. The health department says about 19,500 people have started the patient registration process. Of those, about 2,700 have submitted at least part of the application.
The tally is still far short of the number of patients the program's coordinator hoped would enroll in the first year. In July, program coordinator Bob Morgan said "thousands, hopefully tens of thousands" were expected to enroll.
Qualifying patients pay an annual fee of $100 for a marijuana card and need a doctor's written certification.
