In the News
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app.com: MAKARY: Doctors like me must stop overprescribing opioids
Posted 8/5/2017
For most of my surgical career, I gave out opioids like candy. My colleagues and I were unaware that about one in 16 patients become chronic users, according to new research by doctors at the University of Michigan. Even more alarming, research shows that relapse rates after opioid addiction treatment could be as high as 91 percent. In addition to expanding treatment, it’s time we address the root of the problem — overprescribing.
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NYTimes.com: Short Answers to Hard Questions About the Opioid Crisis
Posted 8/3/2017
This week, President Trump’s commission on combating the opioid crisis, led by Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, recommended that the president declare a national emergency. The problem has become significantly worse recently, so you might feel that you could use a little catching up. Here are 11 things you need to know.
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nj.com: How Christie's commission wants to fight opioid addiction
Posted 8/2/2017
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump should declare a national emergency and put the federal government fully behind efforts to curb opioid addiction, according to a preliminary report by the commission chaired by Gov. Chris Christie.
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statnews.com: Prescription opioid use is widespread. Here’s who is most vulnerable to misuse
Posted 8/2/2017
Nearly 92 million adults in the United States used prescription opioids in 2015 — and while the vast majority of those individuals used the medications according to their prescriptions, some groups are particularly vulnerable to opioid use disorders, a new study finds.
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cbsnews.com: More than 1 in 3 Americans prescribed opioids in 2015
Posted 8/2/2017
More than one out of three average Americans used a prescription opioid painkiller in 2015, despite growing concerns these medicines are promoting widespread addiction and overdose deaths, a new federal study shows.
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pbs.org: Almost half of all opioid misuse starts with a friend or family member’s prescription
Posted 8/2/2017
More than half of adults who misused opioids did not have a prescription, and many obtained drugs for free from friends or relatives, according to a national survey of more than 50,000 adults.
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khn.org: Opioid Treatment Funds In Senate Bill Would Fall Far Short Of Needs
Posted 7/27/2017
In Pennsylvania in 2016, Medicaid expansion helped 124,000 people get treatment for their substance use disorder. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf has said his state won’t be able to maintain Medicaid expansion if the federal government cuts back its share of spending. Without the program, many of those people would have limited access to help for their addiction.
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newjersey.news12.com: NJ lawmaker wants to give police access to prescription database
Posted 7/27/2017
LAKEWOOD - A New Jersey lawmaker wants to give law enforcement officers access to the state’s prescription drug monitoring database without a court order, in order to fight New Jersey’s opioid addiction epidemic.
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newjersey.news12.com: New Jersey AG collects prescriptions to cut down on abuse
Posted 7/27/2017
TRENTON - The New Jersey attorney general says that his office is taking in a record number of prescription pills, all in order to cut down on drug abuse.
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wsls.com: Amid Scourge of Opioid Epidemic, How Addicted Americans Are Struggling to Get Clean
Posted 7/27/2017
When a very pregnant Keenan Beckhart was told during an ultrasound appointment that she had no amniotic fluid left for childbirth, she panicked.