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.
If the world’s population continues to smoke at current levels, smoking could lead to an extra 18 million cases of tuberculosis, and 40 million excess deaths by 2050.
California Governor Jerry Brown signed two bills that increase access to sterile syringes. The bills are designed to reduce the spread of HIV and hepatitis C among people who use drugs.
Almost 1,600 people applying for welfare benefits in Florida have declined to undergo drug testing, which is required by a new state law.
Kentucky is considering whether to require prescriptions for cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine, the key ingredient in methamphetamine.
School counselors have the ability to see inconsistencies in performance or changes in behavior that may fly under the radar of a family member, says Stephanie LoBiondo, MS, of the American School Counselor Association.
A growing number of states are requiring drug testing for recipients of welfare, food stamps, unemployment and other benefits.
Parents and officials are protesting the appearance of candy shaped like marijuana leaves in stores around the country.
The decision by a public college in Missouri to require drug testing of all students has stirred a fierce debate, according to The New York Times.
Movies that depict smoking make less money than smoke-free films, a new study concludes.
United States attorneys in California have told dozens of marijuana dispensaries they must close or face criminal and civil action.
A study of people admitted for substance abuse treatment for the first time has found they waited an average of 15.6 years to seek help from the time they initially used the substance.
California Governor Jerry Brown has signed a law banning alcohol sales at self-checkout aisles.
A new study finds a program designed to assist communities in preventing unhealthy behaviors in teens is effective in reducing adolescent smoking and drinking.
A group representing pain management physicians is advocating for legislation that would require health care professionals who prescribe opioids to receive specialized training. Several such bills are currently circulating in the House and Senate.
Doctors frequently fail to ask their young adult patients about excess alcohol use. The findings come from a new study by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
The Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health announced they will study the effect of new tobacco regulations on the health and behavior of smokers.
Drivers who test positive for marijuana or who drive within three hours of using marijuana are more than twice as likely to be involved in motor vehicle crashes compared with those who don’t use the drug, according to a new review of studies.
People with a family history of alcoholism are more likely to drink when they feel under stress, a new study suggests.
The nasal-inhaled drug naloxone (Narcan) has been used to reverse more than 1,000 opiate overdoses in Massachusetts in the past four years, according to the Boston Globe.
One out of 10 Florida inmates is incarcerated for using drugs, and only a small percentage of these prisoners are receiving help for their addiction, advocates for increased treatment told members of the state’s Senate Criminal Justice Committee.
A low-cost drug not available in the United States is effective in helping smokers quit, a new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine has found.
Men who use cocaine are 45 percent more likely to develop glaucoma, and to develop the eye disease almost 20 years sooner, than men who do not use illegal drugs, according to a new study.
Rates of alcohol-impaired driving have dropped 30 percent since 2006, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Drunk driving rates remain high among young men, binge drinkers and people who don’t always wear a seatbelt.
Many young adults entering treatment for an addiction want to change, but don’t have the skills, confidence or commitment to do so without help, a new study suggests.
Alcohol consumption and obesity are among the top causes of sudden cardiac death that is not caused by coronary artery disease, according to new research.