From Time by Alexandra Sifferlin April 20 is known as a popular “4/20” holiday for marijuana enthusiasts, but researchers argue that the festivities may have serious consequences, including an increased risk of fatal traffic crashes. In a research letter published Monday in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, Canadian researchers looked at 25 years of data on fatal crashes […]
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Addiction experts have new tools, tough challenges
From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. by Rich Lord SAN DIEGO — After years of surging overdoses, some of the officials and medical practitioners most deeply involved in the fight against opioids have hope that they finally have the tools, the funding and the public support needed to get the epidemic under control. “I have some cautious […]
Virginia community partners team up to fight opioid crisis
From The Daily Progress. by Rebecca Kendall Vital Signs: Community partners teaming up on opioid crisis Last month, the federal government unveiled its plan to address the opioid epidemic. While our region (Charlottesville and Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson counties) is not as severely impacted as other areas, such as Southwest Virginia, our region’s […]
Opioid addiction is costing employers $2.6 billion a year
From MSN. A new report shows large employers spent $2.6 billion to treat opioid addiction and overdoses in 2016, an eightfold increase since 2004. More than half went to treat employees’ children. The analysis released Thursday by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation finds such spending cost companies and workers about $26 per enrollee in 2016. […]
NIH launches HEAL Initiative
From NIH. NIH launches HEAL Initiative, doubles funding to accelerate scientific solutions to stem national opioid epidemic Wednesday, April 4, 2018 Today, at the 2018 National Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit, National Institutes of Health Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., announced the launch of the HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term) Initiative, an aggressive, […]
A million people out of work due to opioid addiction
From the Washington Post. Nearly 1 million people were out of the workforce because of opioid addiction in 2015, according to a study By Katie Zezima Nearly 1 million people were not working because of opioid addiction in 2015, the latest research to show that drug use is having a profound effect on the U.S. […]
E-cigarette ads associated with cigarette smoking initiation among youth
From NIDA: Science Spotlight A scientific study finds that receptivity to e-cigarette advertising increases the likelihood of trying conventional cigarettes one year later. The research was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, and the Center for Tobacco Products, U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The study […]
How Many Opioid Overdoses Are Suicides?
From the Washington Post. by Martha Bebinger Mady Ohlman was 22 on the evening some years ago when she stood in a friend’s bathroom looking down at the sink. “I had set up a bunch of needles filled with heroin because I wanted to just do them back-to-back-to-back,” Ohlman recalled. She doesn’t remember how many […]
WV to receive supplemental funding to fight opioid crisis
From SAMHSA – Press Release SAMHSA directing supplemental funding to three states hit hard by opioid crisis Tuesday, March 20, 2018 Rockville, MD – The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) on Monday announced it will award additional grant funding to three states that have been hit especially hard by the national opioid […]
ED opioid overdose visits rise 30% across U.S.
From the CDC. MMWR, March 9, 2018/67(9);279-285 Vital Signs: Trends in Emergency Department Visits for Suspected Opioid Overdoses – United States, July 2016-September2017 Data from emergency departments (EDs) show that the U.S. opioid overdose epidemic continues to worsen, according to the latest Vital Signs report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report examines […]