The Latest News from Our Field

Heroin is the top drug threat in the United States, the Drug Enforcement Administration said Wednesday. Availability of heroin is up across the country, as are abuses, overdoses and overdose deaths, NBC News reports.

A bill filed Wednesday by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont would allow states to decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana, according to CNN. The bill would also decriminalize marijuana at the federal level.

British health specialists are warning about a trend called “chemsex,” which refers to intentional sex under the influence of psychoactive drugs, mostly among men who have sex with men. Chemsex sessions often last several hours to several days, with multiple sexual partners.

The sixth annual American Medicine Chest Challenge National Day of Awareness and Safe Disposal will take place on Saturday, November 14. Americans are encouraged to safely dispose of unused, unwanted and expired medicine at more than 1,500 Rx permanent collection sites at local police departments and sheriffs’ offices throughout the country.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, October 30- Thursday, November 5, 2015.

The popularity of the “Dark Web” for purchasing illegal drugs is especially worrisome because it is increasing the availability and acceptability of drugs, according to an addiction psychiatry expert.

Tobacco dependence in teens should be treated as seriously as drug or alcohol addiction, according to researchers at the University of Georgia. They found only a small number of counselors in addiction treatment centers for teens implement some sort of tobacco cessation treatment.

Ohio voters rejected a ballot proposal Tuesday to legalize both recreational and medical marijuana, according to the Associated Press. About 65 percent of voters opposed the measure.

Some prosecutors and law enforcement officials oppose changes to mandatory minimum sentences for some drug charges, according to The Washington Post. They say the changes will make it more difficult for them to go after criminal organizations or uncover other crimes.

A new study finds almost 60 percent of American adults are taking at least one prescription drug, up sharply since 2000. Almost every type of medication is being used at a higher rate, the researchers report.

The death rate of white middle-aged Americans is on the rise, driven in large part because of drug and alcohol overdoses, suicide, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver, a new study finds.

As the demographics of heroin use continue to shift, a growing number of families whose children died of heroin overdoses are calling for a change in approach to addressing the crisis, according to The New York Times.

Police departments around the country are starting programs based on one created in Gloucester, Massachusetts earlier this year that provides treatment for people who come to the police station with illegal drugs and paraphernalia, instead of arresting them.

A new study finds pediatricians who participate in two to three brief training sessions designed to identify and treat young people with potential alcohol, substance use and mental health problems are much more likely to conduct brief interventions with patients deemed at risk.

A study of people addicted to painkillers who began using heroin confirms that many of them were drawn to heroin’s low cost and wide availability.

Teens who are prescribed opioid painkillers may be at greater risk of future opioid misuse, a new study suggests. Use of painkillers in high school was associated with a 33 percent increased risk of later misuse.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont on Wednesday said “the time is long overdue for us to remove the federal prohibition on marijuana.” The Democratic presidential candidate spoke at an event that was live-streamed to about 300 college campuses nationwide.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana, an advocacy group that opposes legalization of recreational marijuana, this week released a scorecard of presidential candidates.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, October 23- Thursday, October 29, 2015.

In light of these recent societal and political experiments surrounding the regulation of marijuana and with legalization ballot initiatives expected in several states in 2016, the American Society of Addiction Medicine updated their policy statement on marijuana so that it speaks to the broad public health and safety aspects of such measures.

The Department of Transportation is banning airline passengers from packing e-cigarettes and other battery-operated electronic smoking devices in their checked bags because of the risk of fires, the Associated Press reports.

A new government study finds that almost 13 percent of U.S. adults have tried e-cigarettes, the Los Angeles Times reports. Almost 4 percent of adults use the devices on a regular basis.

The Marijuana Policy Project, a pro-legalization advocacy group, has re-released its scorecard of candidates’ stand on marijuana in advance of tonight’s Republican debate in Colorado.

The risk of overdosing on methadone is influenced by a person’s genetic makeup, a new study suggests.

Four out of five teens ages 12 to 17 who have used tobacco say the first product they tried was flavored, according to a new study by researchers from the Food and Drug Administration.