Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
They're Going To Addiction Treatment Centers For Help And 'Leaving In Body Bags'
The New York Times: Haven For Recovering Addicts Now Profits From Their Relapses
It was the kind of afternoon that cold-weary tourists revel in as they sip mojitos near the beach — a dazzling sun, a sky so blue it verged on Photoshopped and weather fit for flip-flops. But the young visitor from Arkansas, curled up into a ball near the sidewalk, had a better reason to be grateful. He was alive. “You are overdosing on heroin,” Sean Gibson, a paramedic captain with the Delray Beach Fire-Rescue, had told him earlier this year, after the man fell off his bike, hit a chain-link fence and collapsed, blood trickling down his face. (Alvarez, 6/20)
Los Angeles Times: Hospitalization Rate For Opioid Abuse Doubled In 10 Years, Report Says
The opioid epidemic continues to devastate Americans, and a new report shows that it has only gotten worse in recent years. In 2014, abuse of prescription painkillers such as OxyContin and street drugs such as heroin sent users to hospitals at record rates. That is true in emergency rooms, and even more true in rooms for patients who have been admitted to the hospital. (Netburn and Kaplan, 6/20)
The Oregonian: Oregon Hospitalizations For Opioids Skyrocket
Hospitalizations in Oregon for opioid-related issues more than doubled over the past decade, a new report shows. Over 12,000 people were admitted to an Oregon hospital for opioid dependence, abuse and overdose in 2014, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. That compares with just over 5,000 in 2005. Hospitalizations nationwide skyrocketed as well, soaring nearly 65 percent to 712,000 patients in 2014. Emergency department visits nearly doubled, affecting more than 560,000 people the same year. (Terry, 6/20)
And in other news —
Cincinnati Enquirer: City Taxpayers To Fund Needle Exchange Program
Cincinnati City Council added a needle exchange program into the proposed 2018 budget, salvaging a program health officials say prevent the spread of Hepatitis C and HIV. The University of Cincinnati-based program, which allows users to trade used needles for clean needles, had been privately funded by Interact for Health, a 20-county non-profit health agency. (Coolidge, 6/20)
WBUR: Harsh Reception For Supervised Drug Injection In Boston
If the first public hearing is any indication, Boston supporters of rooms where drug users would inject under medical supervision have a long road ahead of them. Passions ran high before the hearing on bringing supervised injection facilities, or SIFs, to Boston even began Monday. (Bebinger, 6/20)
