opioid epidemic

A bellwether trial is set to start Monday in federal court in Cleveland to determine whether retail pharmacy chains are liable for costs related to the opioid crisis in two Ohio counties

A trial is now underway for a potential opioid vaccine — meant to protect against a deadly opioid overdose.

A landmark settlement in the nation’s opioid epidemic is forcing the owners of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma to give up the company and pay out $4.5 billion

Before Jenna Tatro died — yet another loss to the cruelty of opioid use disorder — she had promised her mom and dad that, if she could just get clean, she’d devote her life to improving access to treatment and recovery. So Greg and Dawn Tatro made Jenna’s Promise theirs, starting a nonprofit under that name.

Preliminary Department of Public Health data show 1,038 people died of opioid overdoses in the first six months of this year, an estimated 5% decrease from the same time period in 2020. The preliminary data, presented by Acting DPH Commissioner Margret Cooke at a Public Health Council meeting Wednesday, includes both confirmed deaths and those estimated through a modeling process….

Overdose deaths soared to a record 93,000 last year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic

Many hip hop songs normalize opioids and other drugs, a fact that is left out of public health approaches to the opioid epidemic, says Kaiser Health News reporter Chaseedaw Giles. At the same time, many people are unaware of side effects like withdrawal – which could be solved with public health messaging that looks to the culture and incorporates it.

Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio plans to start a substance use disorder treatment center in Vermont, where the band was formed in 1983. Anastasio, who is now 14 years sober, announced Thursday that his Divided Sky Foundation has purchased a building for the nonprofit center in Ludlow. “Like so many people in America and so many in Vermont, I became addicted…

Advocates and lawmakers are calling for high-level attention on steps to address the crisis of drug overdose deaths in Vermont, which they say has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. These calls came the same day Gov. Phil Scott, R-Vermont, proclaimed Wednesday Recovery Day in the state, vowing to support people with substance use disorders in seeking treatment and brighter days…

Vermont advocates push for new ways to address opioid crisis after substance use rises during the pandemic.

Doctors say they’re facing increasing threats of violence for refusing to prescribe opioids or trying to wean patients off the addictive painkillers.

Baker administration finance officials are characterizing the governor’s fiscal 2022 spending plan as something of a recovery budget, and the $45.6 billion proposal includes several measures targeting areas spotlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In public health, Gov. Charlie Baker’s budget will include spending to support staffing at the state laboratory and public health hospitals and continue $10 million in grants…

Gov. Charlie Baker dedicated his annual State of the Commonwealth address Tuesday evening to the people of Massachusetts, from how they’ve heroically confronted the coronavirus pandemic to how much TV they’ve been watching. Baker thanked Massachusetts residents for how they’ve adjusted to mitigate the coronavirus pandemic and the heroes who have stepped up to help during the calamitous year....

The CDC reports that overdose fatalities in the U.S. have spiked during the coronavirus pandemic.

Doctors explain the stress of isolation, loss of work and loss of health coverage are partially to blame — but they’re finding that something else is causing the spike in overdoses.

Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of the painkiller Oxycontin, pleaded guilty to charges for its role in the opioid crisis. 

The Department of Justice announced Wednesday that Purdue Pharma agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges for their marketing of OxyContin.

Up to seven people were hospitalized, including five law enforcement officers and a tow truck driver, after a chemical exposure while attempting to aid the driver of a car who stopped on the Golden Gate Bridge Sunday, California authorities said.

The number of fatal drug overdoses grew 7% last year in Maine, underscoring that the opioid epidemic continues to be a major health care challenge in the state, officials said Friday. The 380 deaths remained below the peak of 417 overdose deaths in 2017, according to the analysis by Dr. Marcella Sorg of the University of Maine’s Margaret Chase Smith…

A federal judge entered a final order Tuesday on his ruling last year that a nonprofit’s proposal to open the nation’s first supervised injection site for opioid users in Philadelphia does not violate federal law.