The Obama Administration announced Friday it plans to spend $94 million to improve and expand delivery of substance abuse services in health centers. The funding will focus on treatment of opioid use disorders in underserved populations.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, March 4- Thursday, March 10, 2016.
The heroin epidemic is becoming increasingly visible as more people who use the drug are overdosing in public spaces, The New York Times reports.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, February 26- Thursday, March 3, 2016.
Researchers at the University of Houston are testing whether virtual reality can be used to treat people addicted to heroin. They will navigate a simulated house party with stimuli that evoke drug cravings, according to Reuters.
A nonprofit group in Boston plans to open a space this month for people using heroin to ride out their high under the supervision of a nurse and an outreach worker, NPR reports.
Baltimore Health Commissioner Leana Wen is struggling to provide addiction treatment on demand, NPR reports. An estimated 20,000 people in the city use heroin, and 65,000 have some kind of addiction to drug or alcohol or both.
U.S. Representative Hal Rogers, writes, "It’s incomprehensible that one in five students are living homeless in some of our communities. While there are a number of factors to consider when trying muster up a reason as to how this could happen, one that routinely stands out, is the high rate of addiction."
Vermont, which has been battling a heroin epidemic in recent years, has become a model for other states in emphasizing treatment over jail, according to The Christian Science Monitor.
The mayor of Ithaca, New York says he wants his city to be the first in the United States to host a supervised injection facility for people who use heroin, the Associated Press reports.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has created a documentary that illustrates the toll of opiate addiction, The Kansas City Star reports. The film, called “Chasing the Dragon,” will be distributed to school districts nationwide and can be downloaded for free. High school students are a principal target audience of the film.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, February 12- Thursday, February 18, 2016.
Both Republican and Democratic legislators are supporting proposals to address the heroin crisis, USA Today reports.
Almost 500 people in Vermont are on waiting lists to receive medication to treat their opioid dependence, Stateline reports. More than half will wait almost a full year.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, February 5- Thursday, February 11, 2016.
A growing number of police departments are trying new approaches to battling the heroin epidemic, the Associated Press reports. Instead of simply arresting people, they are helping steer people into treatment.
A new poll finds 49 percent of Americans say heroin use is a very serious national problem, while an additional 38 percent say it is a somewhat serious problem.
President Obama is asking for more than $1 billion in new funding to address the opioid epidemic, USA Today reports. The funding would expand access to treatment for prescription drug abuse and heroin use.
More funding and stronger measures are needed to fight opioid addiction, officials said Wednesday at a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee. They called for greater access to addiction treatment and more stringent rules for painkiller prescribing.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, January 22- Thursday, January 28, 2016.
The opioid overdose antidote naloxone is being offered free to high schools around the country by the drugmaker Adapt Pharma, according to U.S. News & World Report.
After the Police Chief of Gloucester, Massachusetts announced the town will connect people with treatment when they come to the police station with illegal drugs and paraphernalia, instead of arresting them, 56 police departments in 17 states have started similar programs.
Several Massachusetts health insurance companies are taking aggressive steps to combat opioid addiction, NPR reports. These steps include assigning social workers to some patients.
Vermont is starting a pilot program this month that will offer the opioid addiction treatment Vivitrol to departing inmates at one correctional facility. If it is successful, the state plans to expand it to all seven of the state’s prisons, CBS News reports.
Top headlines of the week from Friday, January 15- Thursday, January 21, 2016.
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