Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
World Drug Report Says 275 Million People Used Drugs In 2020
AP: UN: 275 Million People Used Drugs Worldwide In 2020
Around 275 million people used drugs worldwide last year, while over 36 million people suffered from drug use disorders, according to the World Drug Report released Thursday by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime in Vienna. The report also said many countries saw a rise in the use of cannabis during the coronavirus pandemic. In surveys of health professionals across 77 countries, 42% said cannabis use had increased. A rise in the non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs was also observed in the same period. (6/24)
AP: In Pandemic, Drug Overdose Deaths Soar Among Black Americans
It was September, and as the COVID-19 pandemic intensified America’s opioid addiction crisis in nearly every corner of the country, many Black neighborhoods like this one suffered most acutely. The portrait of the opioid epidemic has long been painted as a rural white affliction, but the demographics have been shifting for years as deaths surged among Black Americans. The pandemic hastened the trend by further flooding the streets with fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid, in communities with scant resources to deal with addiction. (Galofaro, 6/24)
In other news about the drug epidemic —
Albuquerque Journal: 20K Doses Of Opioids Unaccounted For At Peralta Pharmacy
A pharmacy in Valencia County can no longer fill prescriptions after inspections found more than 20,000 doses of opioids unaccounted for. The state Board of Pharmacy reached an agreement with Joe’s Pharmacy, owner Michael Leon Otero and pharmacist-in-charge Shirley Jojola on May 26. The settlement comes after federal Drug Enforcement Agency inspections in 2018 and 2019 found “substantial deficiencies” in the pharmacy’s operations, including the unaccounted for doses of various opioids. The state pharmacy licensing board accepted the surrender of Otero’s board-issued licenses last month. (Grijalva, 6/24)
WTNH: Doctors See Alarming Trend Of Kids Brought Into ER For Drug Overdoses, Fentanyl In Their System
An alarming trend being seen at Connecticut Children’s in Hartford; young children, some even infants, being brought into the emergency room for a drug overdose. They all have fentanyl in their system. Three overdoses within a week and they have had about half a dozen or so in the last month – two of them in Hartford. (Wilson, 6/23)
Detroit Free Press: EMS Calls For Overdoses Up Across Michigan In 2021
The number of EMS runs for opioid overdoses has increased again this year, according to new data provided by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Across the state, EMS units responded to 13% more probable opioid overdoses during the first five months of this year, compared to the same time frame in 2020. The breakdown from January to May: 5,782 runs this year; 5,121 runs in 2020: and 4,500 in 2019. (Kovanis, 6/24)
Portland Press Herald: Drug Overdose Deaths Continue To Rise At Record Pace In Maine
Fatal drug overdoses continue to rise in Maine, setting a pace that could eclipse the record number of deaths that occurred last year during the coronavirus pandemic.Through April, the state has reported 199 confirmed or suspected overdose deaths, a monthly average of roughly 50 deaths. That’s more than the 163 fatal overdoses during the same period last year, when the monthly average was nearly 41. Overall, a record 504 people died of a drug overdose in 2020, a 33 percent increase over the 380 people who died of a drug overdose in 2019. (6/23)
Also —
AP: CDC: HIV Tests Rare In Medical Settings Among WVa Drug Users
Emergency departments and inpatient medical personnel rarely conducted HIV testing on intravenous drug users in a West Virginia county with one of the nation’s highest spikes in such cases, according to a federal investigation released Thursday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention presented the preliminary findings during a meeting of state and local health officials, the Department of Health and Human Resources said in a news release. (Raby, 6/24)
The Washington Post: Kim Blalock, Alabama Mom Battling Chronic Back Pain, Faces Felony Charge After Taking An Opioid While Pregnant
Kim Blalock, who says she has chronic back pain, battled excruciating aches during her most recent pregnancy, so she turned to painkillers prescribed by her doctor, hoping for relief. Instead, the 36-year-old mother of six has endured a distressing ordeal: Her baby tested positive for the opioid, which precipitated an investigation that led an Alabama prosecutor to charge Blalock with prescription fraud in a case her attorneys say is an unprecedented violation of a pregnant woman’s privacy and freedoms. Lauderdale County District Attorney Chris Connolly said this is the first time he has prosecuted a pregnant woman refilling her prescription as fraud. (Kornfield, 6/24)
