Substance Use Disorder

Many California inmates imprisoned under the state’s “three strikes” laws are much more likely than the general prison population to be addicted to drugs and alcohol, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and substance abuse face an increased risk of death, a new study suggests.

Substance abuse among members of the U.S. military and their families has become a public health crisis, according to a new report. The Defense Department’s approaches to preventing and treating substance abuse are outdated, the report states.

The federal government is introducing a national campaign to prevent suicide, CNN reports. The Surgeon General notes that individuals with mental and/or substance use disorders are at increased risk for suicidal behaviors.

The most popular students are more likely than their classmates to smoke cigarettes, according to a study of teenagers at seven predominantly Hispanic/Latino high schools in California.

A new study finds elevated rates of suicides and overdose deaths in the month after people have been released from the hospital for substance abuse treatment. Researchers found death rates were substantially higher for those who had been out of the hospital for less than one month, compared with those who had been out for at least one year.

A new survey finds an estimated 17 percent of American high school students say they drink, smoke or use drugs during the school day. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found 86 percent of teens say they know which of their peers are abusing substances at school.

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy is sponsoring the first National “Above the Influence” Day on October 18 to celebrate youth who avoid pressure to use drugs and alcohol.

A new study shows people who are treated for both post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance abuse have improved PTSD symptoms, without an increase in severity of substance dependence.

Therapists who treat adolescents for drug and alcohol abuse deliver more complete treatment when they are offered monetary rewards based on the quality and quantity of care they deliver, suggests a new study.

A report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration finds 37.2 percent of treatment admissions for substance abuse involve both drugs and alcohol.

Almost 30 percent of boys and 18 percent of girls in middle and high school used some type of tobacco last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday. The rate of teen tobacco use has been slowly declining over the past decade.

The Affordable Care Act is leading to changes, both now and in 2014, for people with private health insurance who have a substance use disorder.

Substance abuse treatment centers say they expect to see increased drug and alcohol abuse in the wake of the shootings in Aurora, Colorado, according to The Denver Post.

Increases in cigarette prices lead to significant increases in binge drinking in young adults, a new study suggests.

Substance abuse is a growing problem among older Americans, and the nation’s health care system is not prepared to adequately address the need, according to a report by the Institute of Medicine.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act is extremely uplifting for the substance abuse field, according to A. Thomas McLellan, PhD, CEO of the Treatment Research Institute and former Deputy Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Three current members of the U.S. House, joined by two former members, argued this week that health insurers are trying to take advantage of customers by decreasing coverage of mental health and addiction treatment.

A growing number of Floridians in their 50s are entering publicly funded substance abuse treatment programs, according to a new report.

A new study concludes teenagers and young adults with mental health disorders are more likely to be prescribed opioids for chronic pain, and more likely to become long-term opioid users, compared with their peers who don’t have a mental health disorder.

A growing number of high school students are using attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drugs, such as Adderall and Ritalin, to help them get better grades, The New York Times reports. Teens get them from friends, buy them from student dealers, or pretend to have ADHD in order to get prescriptions.

Treating teenagers for major depression can reduce the odds they will develop a drug use disorder, a new study suggests.

Family dinners, long considered to be a way to reduce the odds of teen substance abuse, may not be as effective as previously thought, a new study suggests.

Ken Winters, PhD, of the Treatment Research Institute sees two problems with the proposed DSM revisions.

The United States is looking to other nations for ideas on how to treat addiction as a disease, the U.S. Director of National Drug Control Policy said Tuesday.