The Latest News from Our Field

Two U.S. senators are calling on Congress to pass an emergency spending bill to combat the growing opioid epidemic, according to The Hill. Senators Angus King of Maine and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire are asking for $600 million in funding.

President Obama has named Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to lead a new effort to address the problem of heroin and prescription drug abuse in rural America.

A study of more than 100 video games finds 42 percent feature characters smoking cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars and other products, or make references to those products. Experts tell CNN they are concerned young people who play the games may be influenced to start smoking.

Young infants are just as likely as older children to be accidentally poisoned, a new study finds. Babies younger than six months old are most likely to be accidentally poisoned by acetaminophen, according to HealthDay.

Some types of e-cigarettes contain enough alcohol to affect motor skills, a new study concludes. E-cigarettes deliver nicotine by vaporizing liquids, which may contain alcohol and other chemicals.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy will host a webinar, “Community Benefit and Local Substance Use Prevention,” on January 21.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, January 8- Thursday, January 14, 2016.

Do school nurses REALLY need naloxone? The answer is YES. The data about drug overdose is alarming. Our youth are at risk and school nurses recognize the danger.

High prescribing rates of opioid painkillers are likely a factor in the increase in neonatal abstinence syndrome, according to the head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

More children are being sent into foster care as a result of the abuse of heroin and opioid painkillers, The Wall Street Journal reports. Officials say opioid abuse is straining child welfare agencies.

An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration recommended Tuesday that the agency approve the buprenorphine implant Probuphine as a treatment for opioid addiction.

Only 10 percent of Medicaid patients who smoke receive smoking cessation medication, according to a new study. One-third of Medicaid patients smoke, compared with 17 percent of the general population.

Teens are likely to try alcohol before they try either tobacco or marijuana, a new study concludes. The findings come from a study of 2,835 U.S. high school seniors, The Washington Post reports.

Researchers have identified more than 400 diseases that can co-occur in people with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. The findings reinforce that alcohol can affect any organ or system in the developing fetus, the researchers note.

Economic downturns can lead to greater rates of drinking even among people who hold onto their jobs, a new study suggests. Previous research has shown people who lose their jobs during a recession are more likely to drink.

Billionaire Sean Parker, the former president of Facebook, has donated $500,000 to promote an initiative to legalize recreational marijuana for adults in California, Forbes reports.

Medicaid would cover 15 days of inpatient addiction treatment per month under a new proposed plan by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which runs the program.

A new study finds 90 percent of people who overdose on prescription opioids continue to receive prescriptions for the drugs.

Two U.S. senators are asking the federal government to address the growing problem of drug-dependent newborns, Reuters reports. They say thousands of infants are born each year to mothers who used opioids during pregnancy.

Seven in 10 teens are exposed to e-cigarette ads, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Teens see the ads on TV, in print, online and at retail outlets.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, December 18, 2015- Thursday, January 7, 2016.

Novel psychoactive substances, also known as synthetic drugs, are notoriously difficult to legislate. It seems that as soon as a substance is scheduled as a controlled substance under state or federal law, the formula is changed and a new variety appears on the market that is technically legal, explains Heather Gray, Legislative Director of National Alliance for Model State Drug Laws.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention face stiff opposition to its effort to reduce prescribing of opioid painkillers, the Associated Press reports. Critics of new prescribing guidelines include drug manufacturers, industry-funded groups and some public health officials.

Synthetic marijuana, once sold mostly online and in convenience stores, is now largely a street drug, according to PBS NewsHour. People who use the drug tend to be poor, urban and homeless, experts say.

While marijuana, both recreational and medical, is legal in a growing number of states, some states remain unlikely to legalize the drug any time soon, according to USA Today. These include states in the South, West and Midwest.