The Latest News from Our Field

Several recent cases of drugs smuggled into substance abuse treatment centers highlight how difficult it is to eradicate drug use in these facilities, according to USA Today.

Illegal drugs including heroin, cocaine, opioid pills, Ecstasy and LSD are for sale through an online marketplace named Silk Road, which law enforcement officials have been unable to shut down.

A new study finds three risk factors for smoking among young adults are being impulsive, using alcohol regularly and receiving low grades in school.

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer of New York has introduced a new bill aimed at “Molly” and similar synthetic drugs, The Wall Street Journal reports.

A quick Internet search of “pills to boost your brain power” will return thousands of hits. For high school and college students, the pressure to perform academically makes the idea of a pill that can help with attention or studying even more attractive, says one researcher.

Attorney General Eric Holder has announced the Justice Department will broaden a plan to change how some non-violent drug offenders are prosecuted.

Opioid prescribing for non-cancer pain almost doubled between 2000 and 2010, while prescriptions for non-opioid pain relievers remained relatively stable during that period, according to a new study.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health will award up to $53 million this fiscal year to create a tobacco research program. Funding over five years could reach $273 million, Reuters reports.

A new study finds a link between more experiences of discrimination and higher levels of drug use.

Drug and alcohol violations among employees at U.S. nuclear plants are on the rise, according to a new report. They have increased from about one a month to almost one a week over the last five years.

The poorest 20 percent of American households spent an average of $152 on alcohol last year, a new government survey finds. These households spent less on alcohol last year than at any time in the past 15 years, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Law enforcement officials in Ohio report an increase in the amount of Suboxone, a drug used to treat opioid addiction, being smuggled into prisons, often through the mail.

Electronically tracking purchases of pseudoephedrine, a cold medicine used in making methamphetamine, will not stop production or use of meth, according to a drug policy expert.

U.S. emergency rooms reported almost 23,000 visits for synthetic drugs known as "bath salts" in 2011. The findings come from the first national study to look at bath salts-related emergency room visits, according to HealthDay.

A new study finds a substance abuse treatment program that approaches addiction as a chronic disease is no more effective than a single medical visit and a referral to addiction treatment resources.

Ambulance calls from casinos dropped significantly in Colorado after the state extended its smoke-free law to casino floors, a new study concludes.

Officials in Baton Rouge, Louisiana say a growing number of packages containing illegal drugs are being sent through the U.S. mail and private delivery services, the Associated Press reports.

Join Together speaks with Greg Williams, producer of "The Anonymous People," an independent documentary about the over 23 million Americans living in long-term recovery from addiction.

A new study of high school seniors finds 20 percent say they have engaged in binge drinking in the last two weeks. Ten percent say they have had 10 or more drinks on one occasion, known as extreme binge drinking.

Police made more than 1.5 million arrests last year for drug abuse violations, according to data released Monday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Marijuana offenses accounted for 48.3 percent of drug arrests, according to U.S. News & World Report.

A new app that measures a person’s blood alcohol level will be released in October, Reuters reports. The app works through a device that plugs into the headphone jack of a smartphone.

Naloxone, a drug that blocks the effects of opioids including heroin and oxycodone, has stopped 2,000 overdoses in Massachusetts in the last six years, state officials announced.

The number of people suspected of being sickened by synthetic marijuana in Colorado has risen to 150, NPR reports. Last week, the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control said they were investigating three deaths and 75 hospitalizations potentially caused by the drug.

Children who develop language earlier may be at increased risk of alcohol problems later in life, a new study suggests.

Cigarette smoking may be particularly dangerous for obese people, a new animal study suggests. Researchers found cigarette smoke may affect metabolism, and could increase the risk of cancer in obese people more than in their thinner counterparts.