We curate a digest of the latest news in our field for advocates, policymakers, community coalitions and all who work toward shaping policies and practices to effectively prevent substance use and treat addiction.
Scientists have blocked heroin addiction relapse in rats using a vaccine, according to U.S. News & World Report. They hope the vaccine will be ready for human testing later this year.
Former President Bill Clinton this week pledged his foundation will work with the New York Police Department and other partners to address prescription drug abuse, with a focus on college students.
The soon-to-be-released update of the manual used to diagnose mental illness lacks scientific validity, says the director of the National Institute of Mental Health.
The California Supreme Court on Monday ruled local governments can outlaw medical marijuana dispensaries, according to Reuters.
More than a dozen drug companies are working on abuse-resistant painkillers, in the wake of the Food and Drug Administration’s decision last month not to approve any generic versions of the original form of OxyContin.
Law enforcement officials who are trying to crack down on the growing problem of nitrous oxide abuse have limited options to punish people who sell the gas to those who use it to get high, the Los Angeles Daily News reports.
A California veterinarian is advocating using medical marijuana to help improve the quality of life for some pets with untreatable conditions, according to ABC News.
Fifty percent more pills were collected during the latest National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, compared with the previous event in 2012, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced.
The National Association of Drug Court Professionals announces that they are once again hitting the road this year in May to celebrate National Drug Court Month with an epic cross-country RV tour of Drug Courts, Veterans Treatment Courts and DWI Courts.
An analysis of college students’ Twitter use finds mentions of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug Adderall spikes during finals. Tweets about the drug are most common among students in the northeast and south.
People who drink to improve their mood are three times more likely to become dependent on alcohol, compared with those who don’t use alcohol to feel better or stay calm, new research suggests.
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal has signed a law that requires pain clinics to be licensed by the state medical board, and new clinics to be owned by physicians. The measure is designed to reduce prescription drug abuse, according to The Wall Street Journal.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie on Thursday signed into law a measure that encourages people to report drug overdoses. The law allows people to call 911 to report a drug overdose, without the fear of getting arrested for drug possession themselves.
The key ingredient in sleep medications such as Ambien has been linked to a 220 percent jump in emergency room visits between 2005 and 2010, according to a new government report.
The Food and Drug Administration this week asked for more information on an implant designed to treat opioid addiction, before making a decision on whether to approve the drug, according to Bloomberg News.
Teenage girls may have a more difficult time than boys in quitting methamphetamine, a new study suggests.
Monster Beverage Corp. has filed a lawsuit to stop the San Francisco City Attorney’s office from trying to force the company to limit serving sizes of its energy drinks, as well as its marketing.
Urban Outfitters, the national retail store popular with teens, is currently selling pint and shot glasses and flasks made to look like prescription pill bottles. These products make light of prescription drug misuse and abuse, a dangerous behavior that is responsible for more deaths in the U.S. each year than heroin and cocaine combined. Join us and ask Urban Outfitters to remove these products from their stores and website immediately!
Synthetic marijuana was the third-most abused substance by U.S. high school students last year, behind alcohol and marijuana, according to the Center for Substance Abuse Research at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Dozens of colleges are instituting stricter rules for diagnosing and medicating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, The New York Times reports.
Certain genetic variants in babies who were exposed to opioids in the womb may protect them, leading to shorter hospital stays and less treatment, according to a new study.
Clinicians who treat patients dealing with alcohol abuse often refer them to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), but many have never gone to a meeting and are not familiar with what goes on there, according to an expert on Twelve-Step programs.
Financial institutions are avoiding dealing with marijuana businesses, even in states where the drug is legal. As a result, owners of these businesses are forced to institute cash-only policies, CNN reports.
Smoking prevention programs delivered in schools can be effective in reducing the number of future smokers, a review of studies suggests.
The Medical Board of California has voted to support measures designed to fight prescription drug abuse, the Los Angeles Times reports. The board refused to transfer its investigators looking into physician misconduct in prescription drug abuse cases to the state Attorney General’s office.
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