Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Addiction Treatment Funds May Make The Cut In Omnibus Spending Package
Axios: Year-End Package Could Increase Access To Addiction Treatment
A bipartisan bill to increase access to treatment for opioid addiction has a good chance of being rolled into a year-end package during the lame-duck session, congressional aides tell Axios. Advocates point to federal data showing only one in 10 people with opioid use disorder receive medication for it. (Sullivan, 12/2)
The Texas Tribune: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Supports Decriminalizing Fentanyl Testing Strips
Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday said he supports decriminalizing fentanyl testing strips, reversing his previous opposition to the idea as he tries to fight an increase in opioid overdoses in the state, which he has made a point of emphasis heading into January’s legislative session. (Barragan, 12/1)
In related news —
San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Baby’s Reported Fentanyl Overdose Is ‘Astonishing,’ But Experts Say It’s Not Impossible
Medical experts across the Bay Area and country weighed in Thursday on the report that a 10-month-old baby overdosed on fentanyl at a public park in San Francisco, saying they were stunned and describing such an incident as “very rare,” “unlikely” and “astonishing.” But, they added, possible. (Tucker and Moench, 12/1)
AP: 10 Los Angeles Students Appear To OD On Cannabis Edibles
Ten Los Angeles students appear to have overdosed on cannabis edibles Thursday at their middle school in the San Fernando Valley, officials said. The students, between 12 and 15 years old, were in mild to moderate distress at Van Nuys Middle School around 10:30 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Seven of them were taken to pediatric medical centers. (12/2)
Stat: 'Tranq' Is Leaving Drug Users With Horrific Wounds. It's Spreading.
The volunteers were handing out the staples of harm reduction: safe injection and smoking kits, condoms, and Narcan, the opioid overdose reversal medication. Down the line, they were distributing hats, socks, coats, and blankets to the people who use drugs who came to this outreach event on a recent Saturday, a bright, cold morning a few days before Thanksgiving. Just before the final table, where two mothers who had lost children to overdoses were passing out sandwiches, was evidence of the latest evolution in the increasingly dangerous U.S. drug supply. A wound care station. (Joseph, 12/2)
