Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
At Opioid Rehab Facilities, New Suicide Prevention Guidelines Are Rolling Out
Stateline: Opioid Treatment Programs Gear Up To Provide Suicide Care
It’s long been suspected that the nation’s unprecedented drug overdose epidemic and sharply rising suicide rates are linked. Now health researchers are finding concrete evidence that the two preventable causes of death — which are among the top 10 in the United States — are intrinsically related: People with an opioid addiction are at much higher risk for suicide than the rest of the population; and opioid use was a contributing factor in more than 40% of all suicide and overdose deaths in 2017, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Vestal, 4/11)
NH Times Union: NH Patients Laud FDA Warning Not To Suddenly Cut Opioids To Chronic Pain Sufferers
Chronic pain patients in New Hampshire are welcoming a new federal warning that suddenly cutting off opioid painkillers could cause some patients to turn to illegal drugs — or even take their own lives. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday issued a safety alert, advising doctors not to abruptly discontinue opioid medications for patients who are physically dependent on them. The agency’s action came after reports of “serious harm” to patients after their medicine was discontinued or the dose rapidly decreased, including “serious withdrawal symptoms, uncontrolled pain, psychological distress, and suicide,” the FDA stated. (Wickham, 4/10)
The Philadelphia Inquirer: For Some Neighbors In Opioid-Plagued Kensington, A Supervised Injection Site Feels Like Giving Up
Many people who oppose the site say they want help for people in addiction who live in their neighborhood. But to open a building where drug use is sanctioned to them represents a kind of surrender — a sign that the city is willing to give up on their neighborhood. To permanently designate their neighborhood as the city’s hub of drug use and dealing. (Whelan, 4/10)
