Topic: News
Post of general or timely interest to the field, including items which may not be included in other topics.
Biden picks former West Virginia health official as nation’s drug czar
Rahul Gupta, ally of Sen. Manchin (D-WV), would oversee drug policy strategy if confirmed
Gupta, a primary-care doctor who previously served as West Virginia’s health commissioner, led Biden’s transition efforts for the drug policy office and serves as the top health official at maternal and child advocacy group March of Dimes, would be the first physician to serve as drug czar if confirmed by the Senate.
The Deadliest Year In the History of U.S. Drug Use
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Date: | Contributor: Source: ( ) | Category: Summary and Analysis... Increases in abuse of fentanyl, meth and cocaine are adding to the existing drug addiction crisis. It also appears that part of the pandemic's collateral damage includes an increase in overdose deaths. As covered in the article: The largest overdose spike happened from
Research Identifies Pain Management Strategy That Reduces Opioid Exposure
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Date: | Contributor: Source: ( ) | Category: Summary and Analysis... Another study indicating that non-opioid solutions for pain management can be effective, i.e. opioids do not need to be the first line approach to pain management. Information such as this, had it been widely available and implemented, could have helped avoid the problems
Benzodiazepine scripts reach ‘disturbing’ levels in the US
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Benzodiazepine prescriptions reach ‘disturbing’ levels in the US Date: | Contributor: Source: New Scientist (1/17/2020) | Category: Summary and Analysis... This article reports on a disconcerting trend -- a high level of benzodiazepine prescription in the US and abroad. In too many cases, the benzodiazepine's were co-prescribed with opioids even though the combination of the two can be
Florida Forces Opioid Abusers to Get Help
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Florida Forces Opioid Abusers to Get Help Date: | Contributor: Source: Pew Charitable Trusts (March 7, 2018) | Category: Summary and Analysis... Where do your Constitutional rights end? Do they end when you are convicted of a crime, or in this case, when someone who is not a judge, can determine, without your consent, that you should be involuntarily
Pharma Executive Sentenced To 66 Months In Prison In Opioid Trial
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Pharmaceutical Executive Sentenced To 66 Months In Prison In Opioid Trial Date: | Contributor: Source: NPR (1/23/20) | Category: Summary and Analysis... The sentencing of a former pharmaceutical executive to more than five years in prison is being hailed as a potentially important warning to other pharmaceutical executives. Although this trial will hopefully signal the start of other
Suing the Opioid Companies
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Date: | Contributor: Source: ( ) | Category: Summary and Analysis... Two well-informed academics discuss the legal maneuvers and the possible successes of the various lawsuits that have been brought against opioid manufacturers, distributors and big retail pharmacies. They point out that "in the past four years, roughly 400 cities, counties, and states initiated
Christiana Care reports progress in cutting use of opioids
SUBSCRIBE DONATE NOW Search Posts and/or Pages DONATE NOW Date: | Contributor: Source: ( ) | Category: Summary and Analysis... Christina Care, Delaware's largest health care provider, took a strong action of dramatically cutting back the amount of opioids that were prescribed. This was done as a plan to lower the chronic use of opioids, cut-back the number of opioid addicts and thus