Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Pill For Every Pain' Culture Played Key Role In Opioid Epidemic, Experts Say
Fox News: The Fed's New 'War On Drugs': Obama Proposes $1.1 Billion To Expand Care For Opioid Addicts
Amid a prescription opioid abuse and heroin use epidemic largely fueled by overprescribing among doctors, President Obama has suggested allocating $1.1 billion to expand affected individuals’ access to care— a proposal that has garnered bipartisan support. Although some experts question whether throwing money at the issue will be enough, many believe that, if used properly, the funding has the potential to save lives. (Cartensen, 4/14)
The Associated Press: Mass. General: More People Are Using Drugs On Hospital Property
Boston's top hospitals is seeing an increasing number of drug abusers shoot up on its property, a tactic experts say opioid addicts hope will save them from lethal overdoses. Massachusetts General Hospital has equipped its security guards with the overdose antidote Narcan after seeing an increase in the past 18 months of addicts shooting up in MGH walkways, parking garages and bathrooms, where addicts tie emergency pull cords to their bodies in case they collapse. (4/14)
Kaiser Health News: Political Gridlock Blocks Missouri Database For Fighting Drug Abuse
In the battle against America's surging opioid drug addiction, 49 states, the District of Columbia and even Guam have all implemented some kind of [prescription drug monitoring program]. Missouri is the only state that hasn't. A protracted political battle has kept the state from passing a law to establish one. That leaves pharmacists with few options. [They] can only check the prescription history of patients on Medicaid, which tracks such data. But when a patient pays cash there is no record to check leaving pharmacists to guess whether the patient is in genuine pain, feeding an addiction or maybe looking for pills to sell. (Sable-Smith, 4/14)
The Sacramento Bee: Another Fentanyl-Linked Death, Two More Overdoses Reported In Sacramento Region
Just days after hinting that fentanyl overdoses in the Sacramento region were tapering, the county’s health department announced Wednesday one more death and two more overdoses likely caused by the potent synthetic opioid. (Caiola, 4/13)
