Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
For That Occasional Pain In Your Back, Opioids Just Don't Work: Study
NPR: Opioids No More Effective Than Placebo For Common Back Pain, A Study Suggests
Back and neck pain afflicts millions of American adults, driving many to seek relief from their family doctor or even the local emergency room. When these episodes of pain are acute and nonspecific — meaning there's no clear cause or explanation — it's generally advised to start off with everyday remedies like over-the-counter anti-inflammatories, and alternatives like heat therapy, massage or exercise. (Stone, 6/28)
Axios: Oregon Pharmacies Are Well Stocked With Opioid Addiction Treatment Meds
Across the country, it can be difficult to receive medication for opioid addiction, a recent study found, but Oregon has a better supply than most other states. Why it matters: In Multnomah County, there have been 580 confirmed or suspected drug overdose deaths since June 2022, according to the most recent data from the Tri-County Opioid Safety Coalition. Federal data suggests only slightly more than one in 10 people with opioid use disorder receive medication for it. (Gebel, 6/28)
AP: German Police Warn Of 'Blue Punisher' Ecstasy Pills After 2 Teenage Girls Die
German police warned Wednesday of a potentially lethal “Blue Punisher” variety of ecstasy in circulation after the death of two teenage girls was linked to the drug. Police in the northeastern state of Mecklenburg Western Pomerania said that a 13-year-old girl from the town of Altentreptow died Monday at a hospital after taking one of the blue pills featuring a skull logo associated with the Marvel comic book character The Punisher. (6/28)
KFF Health News: Once-Resistant Rural Court Officials Begin To Embrace Medications To Treat Addiction
Rachel Solomon and judges hadn’t been on the best of terms. Then Judge O. Duane Slone “dumbfounded” her. Solomon was given her first Percocet at age 12 by a family member with a medicine cabinet full. It made her feel numb, she said. “Nothing hurt.” By 17, she was taking 80-milligram OxyContins. A decade later, she was introduced to heroin. During those years, Solomon was in and out of trouble with the law. (Sisk, 6/29)
In news about psychedelic drug use —
Military.com: Research On Psychedelics, Marijuana As Alternative Treatment For Vets Advancing In Congress
Psychedelic drugs and marijuana could be evaluated as treatments for post-traumatic disorder and other conditions afflicting veterans under bills advancing through Congress. The version of the annual defense policy bill approved by the House Armed Services Committee last week would require the Pentagon to conduct a clinical trial on treating service members' PTSD, traumatic brain injury and chronic traumatic encephalopathy with drugs including MDMA, commonly called ecstasy, and psilocybin, the psychedelic compound found in magic mushrooms. (Kheel, 6/28)
Stat: Psychedelics Group Wrestles With New Pharma Identity
He could have been a rock star, a religious icon, the way ecstatic applause from thousands of attendees greeted the man dressed in a crisp, all-white suit as he strode onto a backlit stage. He was neither. This was Rick Doblin, the founder and evangelist of a movement to legalize psychedelic MDMA and bring the drug into mainstream medicine. The scene in a Denver conference hall last week was a world away from the first conference Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) held in 1990, when Doblin spoke alongside Timothy Leary — the ex-Harvard professor who popularized the phrase “turn on, tune in, and drop out.” That was just a few years after MDMA, also known as ecstasy, was criminalized, deemed a Schedule 1 drug “of no medical use.” (Goldhill, 6/29)
AP: Biden's Brother Says The President Is 'Very Open-Minded' About Psychedelics For Medical Treatment
President Joe Biden’s youngest brother said in a radio interview Wednesday that the president has been “very open-minded” in conversations the two have had about the benefits of psychedelics as a form of medical treatment. Frank Biden made the comments during a call into The Michael Smerconish Program on SiriusXM. The host had just interviewed a Wall Street Journal reporter who recently wrote about powerful Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and employees who believe the use of psychedelics and similar substances can help lead to business breakthroughs. (Madhani and Bedayn, 6/28)
