The Latest News from Our Field

Smokers in some states will pay more than non-smokers for insurance premiums if they obtain their coverage through new state health exchanges being established as part of the Affordable Care Act. In some cases, smokers’ premiums will be as much as 50 percent higher.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed into law a measure that allows sick children to more easily access edible medical marijuana, CNN reports.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced safety labeling changes for extended-release and long-acting opioid painkillers. The new labels will call attention to the dangers of abuse and possible death, Reuters reports.

Taking certain prescription painkillers early in pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects such as spina bifida, a new study suggests. The overall risk of these birth defects is low, the researchers note.

The federal government is looking for a way for financial institutions to conduct transactions with legitimate marijuana businesses, according to the Associated Press.

The number of college campuses with 100 percent smoke-free policies has doubled since 2011, to 1,182, USA Today reports.

In the first of a two-part series, Join Together speaks with Barry Meier, New York Times reporter and author of the new e-book, “A World of Hurt: Fixing Pain Medicine's Biggest Mistake,” about the problems with long-term opioid use for treating pain and how it became so widespread.

A government anti-tobacco ad campaign featuring graphic images helped 100,000 people quit smoking, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this week.

E-cigarettes are about as effective as nicotine patches in helping smokers quit, a new study suggests. People who use e-cigarettes smoke fewer cigarettes, even if they don’t completely stop smoking, according to NBC News.

A new review of studies finds high rates of fetal alcohol syndrome in children who are adopted from Russian and Eastern European orphanages, or who are in foster care. These children also are more likely than average to have other physical, mental and behavioral problems related to alcohol exposure in the womb.

Recent deaths at electronic dance musical festivals may make corporate sponsors and investors nervous, The New York Times reports. At least seven young people attending these events have died after overdosing from “Molly” or other party drugs.

Young people who attend electronic dance music festivals tell The Christian Science Monitor that use of the drug “Molly” is widespread. The drug has been attributed to four recent overdose deaths, including two at a music festival in New York.

A new national survey of drug use released last week finds heroin use is on the rise, while methamphetamine use is decreasing, Time.com reports.

The attorneys general of Florida, Kentucky and Maine have asked the Los Angeles clothing store Kitson to stop selling T-shirts featuring the prescription drugs Vicodin, Xanax and Adderall.

Synthetic marijuana may be to blame in three deaths and 75 hospitalizations in Colorado, CNN reports.

Random drug testing in schools does not reduce students’ substance use, a national survey of high school students concludes. The study found students who attend schools where they feel treated with respect are less likely to start smoking cigarettes or marijuana.

Use of e-cigarettes among middle and high schools students doubled from 2011 to 2012, according to a new government survey. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found 10 percent of high school students had tried an e-cigarette last year, compared with 5 percent the previous year.

A marijuana advocacy group has posted a billboard ad across from Denver’s football stadium, USA Today reports. The Marijuana Policy Project’s ad urges the National Football League to “Stop Driving Players to Drink.” Referring to Colorado’s new marijuana legalization law, the ad notes, “A safer choice is now legal (here).”

Drug abuse prevention groups this week urged the Department of Justice to reconsider its announcement that it will allow Colorado and Washington to carry out their new recreational marijuana laws.

Law enforcement officials working in a government counternarcotics program have access to a huge AT&T database containing records of decades of phone calls, according to The New York Times.

CVS has announced it has revoked dispensing privileges for more than 36 physicians and other healthcare providers who wrote large numbers of prescriptions for painkillers, NBC News reports.

The U.S. Justice Department announced it will allow Colorado and Washington to carry out their new recreational marijuana laws, according to Reuters. The department will focus enforcement on criminal charges in specific areas, such as distribution to minors.

Laboratories in China are becoming a significant source of synthetic drug production, according to Time.com.

Almost one-fourth of Billboard Magazine’s most popular songs from 2009 to 2011 mentioned alcohol, a new study finds. Of the 167 songs, 46 referenced a specific brand, such as Patron, Hennessy, Grey Goose and Jack Daniel’s.

A national survey released Wednesday finds 5.3 percent of young adults used prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes in the past month, similar to rates in the previous two years. The survey found rates of teen drinking, including binge drinking, in the past month were lower last year compared with 2002 and 2009.