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.
Almost one-third of Medicare beneficiaries—nearly 12 million Americans—received a prescription for commonly abused opioids in 2015, according to a new report. Spending for these drugs exceeded $4 billion, according to the Associated Press.
As the Obama Administration and public health officials push for a reduction in prescription opioids, they are facing some resistance from both patients and doctors, experts tell The New York Times.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has found that a vast drug-distribution network that originates in China is feeding the deadly opioid fentanyl to the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, June 17- Thursday, June 23, 2016.
The drug naloxone reverses overdoses, but it needs to be used as a tool -- not treatment – in saving lives, much like a defibrillator for the heart attack victim. We need more effective ways to save people from drug overdoses, explains Karen Perry, Executive Director of the NOPE Task Force.
Some dental schools are training their students to reduce the amount of opioid painkillers they prescribe for their surgical patients. Dentists are among the leading prescribers of opioids, especially for surgical tooth extractions, NBC News reports.
The American Medical Association is calling for a ban on powdered alcohol to protect young people, Medscape reports. The group notes alcohol is the most widely used substance of abuse among young people, leading to 4,300 underage deaths annually.
A new study suggests smokers who quit try to give up cigarettes an average of 30 times before they succeed. Previous studies indicated the number was much lower, Reuters reports.
A bill introduced in the U.S. Senate by a bipartisan group of legislators would make it easier for researchers to study the medical effectiveness and safety of marijuana. The bill would not legalize recreational or medical marijuana, according to The Hill.
Patients suffering from chronic pain say they are finding it more difficult to get prescriptions for opioid painkillers, The Boston Globe reports. Federal and state regulations to reduce access to opioids have made doctors and pharmacists more reluctant to prescribe and dispense the drugs.
Wisconsin Congresswoman Gwen Moore is proposing that wealthy Americans get drug-tested before being able to take advantage of tax benefits, according to NPR.
The shortage of child psychiatrists, which has been a problem for many years, is becoming worse at a time when the United States is facing an increase in depression and suicides among young people, experts tell NBC News.
College students who have been impacted by a sibling’s addiction are invited to enter the second annual My Life as 3D Scholarship Essay Contest. The deadline is 8 p.m. EDT on Friday, July 1, 2016.
The opioid epidemic is increasing interest in college sober housing, PBS NewsHour reports. Sober dorms offer substance-free housing and activities for students in recovery from addiction to drugs and alcohol.
The head of a Canadian clinic that provides legally prescribed heroin to people addicted to the drug told U.S. senators this week the strategy can reduce the risk of serious illness and premature death, while reducing drug-related crime.
Two former drug salesmen were arrested last week for allegedly paying physicians to prescribe fentanyl, USA Today reports. Fentanyl has received heavy scrutiny after it was announced Prince died from an accidental overdose of the drug.
Georgia has put a one-year moratorium on issuing licenses to clinics that use medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction, NPR reports. Legislators say Georgia put a cap on the number of clinics because it wants to determine why so many opioid treatment programs have opened in the state.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, June 10- Thursday, June 16, 2016.
Research suggests 50 percent or more of patients with psychiatric disorders abuse some type of drugs, including alcohol. Yet there are relatively few treatment programs that address addiction and mental health disorders together, according to John Tsuang, MD, Director of the Dual Diagnosis Treatment Program at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
A new study finds people who have been prescribed opioid painkillers have a higher risk of early death compared with patients given other pain medications. Much of the increased risk is due to cardiovascular complications, HealthDay reports.
A growing number of older adults are becoming addicted to opioid painkillers, The New York Times reports. They are using the pills to deal with the aches and pains of aging and the anxiety that can come with retirement.
Fewer U.S. teens are smoking regular cigarettes, but more are using e-cigarettes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A New Jersey hospital emergency department has been treating pain with alternative regimens, in an attempt to reduce opioid use. The treatments include non-narcotic infusions and injections, ultrasound guided nerve blocks, laughing gas, and “energy healing,” according to The New York Times.
Almost 60 percent of Americans say they have opioid painkillers at home that they no longer use, according to a new survey. Twenty percent say they have shared their opioid pills with another person.
The rate of accidental deaths in the United States is rising, fueled in part by the opioid painkiller and heroin epidemic, according to a new report by the National Safety Council.
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