In the News

  • app.com - NJ opioid story: From football field to jail

    Posted 2/4/2017

    As a rising high school senior trying out for the University of Delaware football team in 2009, Donovan Allieri ripped two ligaments in his right thumb during a defensive end drill.

  • njtvonline.org: Debate Over Limiting Opioid Prescriptions to Five-Day Supply

    Posted 2/2/2017

    There’s overwhelming consensus that over-prescribing and easy access to opiates have fueled the heroin epidemic. But, the head of the Carrier Clinic disagrees with the governor and the Assembly speaker in limiting initial opiate prescriptions to a five-day supply for acute pain.

  • BRAMNICK-RIBLE OPIOID ADDICTION BILL ADVANCES

    Posted 1/30/2017

    TRENTON, N.J. – The Assembly Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee advanced legislation today sponsored by Assembly Republican Leader Jon Bramnick and Assemblyman Dave Rible addressing the opioid epidemic. The vote was 10-0-1.

  • nbcnews.com - The Deadly Triangle: Dentists, Drugs and Dependence

    Posted 1/24/2017

    Like about five million people each year, 27-year-old Brittany Ringersen had her wisdom teeth removed when she was a teenager. But what Brittany's dentist failed to warn her was that her prescription for Percocet, a commonly used painkiller for post-surgery discomfort, had the potential to lead her down a path of dependence.

  • SENATOR VITALE ANNOUNCES BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION TO ADDRESS ADDICTION CRISIS IN NEW JERSEY

    Posted 1/23/2017

    TRENTON – Senate Health Committee Chairman Joseph F. Vitale today announced that he is sponsoring with Senate President Steve Sweeney and Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr. legislation that aims to address the addiction crisis in New Jersey.

  • app.com: N.J. attorney general clamping down on painkillers

    Posted 1/22/2017

    New Jersey Attorney General Chris Porrino is using emergency powers to impose some of the toughest restrictions in the United States on painkiller prescriptions, part of an aggressive campaign against drug addiction outlined by Governor Christie that could also include an investigation into relationships between doctors and drug manufacturers.

  • njtvonline.org: Honoring Those Fighting NJ’s Heroin Epidemic

    Posted 1/19/2017

    NJTV honored some heroes in the fight against New Jersey’s heroin epidemic, among them NJ Advance Media’s Stephen Stirling — a recovering alcoholic and the reporter of the newspaper company’s heralded series “Herointown.” In receiving the Everyday Heroes Communication Award, Stirling offered a sobering personal account of losing a friend who was in recovery.

  • app.com: Coronato, five others win Everyday Hero Awards from NJTV

    Posted 1/18/2017

    Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph Coronato has garnered an Everyday Hero Award from New Jersey Public Television along with others whose work and advocacy have touched on the heroin and opioid epidemic.

  • npr.org - Anatomy Of Addiction: How Heroin And Opioids Hijack The Brain

    Posted 1/13/2017

    Percocet is the brand name for acetaminophen and oxycodone. Oxycodone is a powerful opioid. It's one of the most commonly prescribed painkillers, and is a key factor in one of the country's most pressing public health problems — an opioid addiction epidemic.

  • Vitale Statement on Governor's State of the State Address and Addiction Crisis in New Jersey

    Posted 1/11/2017

    TRENTON – Senate Health Committee Chairman Joseph F. Vitale, who has spearheaded the passage of numerous bills to tackle the heroin epidemic and continues to lead the effort through education, prevention, treatment and recovery, issued the following statement after Governor Christie's state of the state address...