http://www.drugnews.org/ Media Awareness Project Drugnews daily 4 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 http://www.mapinc.org/ http://www.mapinc.org/pix/xmlpower.gif http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n099/a01.html Philadelphia Daily News, 10 Apr 2018 - MORE YOUNG PEOPLE GET IT? "By the time I was 17, 18," Nelson Abbott said, "I graduated to heroin." He tried to stop many times, both by going cold-turkey and tapering off the drugs, but he hated the withdrawal pains and he wasn't really ready to quit. Therapy didn't work out, either. But then his best friend overdosed and died. When Abbott's parents checked him into the Caron Treatment Center in Berks County, he didn't fight. Giordano, Rita Philadelphia Daily News Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-04-10 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n092/a05.html Philadelphia Daily News, 27 Mar 2018 - Gov. Murphy greatly expanded New Jersey's medical marijuana program Tuesday, opening the door to tens of thousands of new patients and allowing the five dispensaries spread across the state to add satellite retail centers and cultivation facilities. The governor added to the list of ailments that qualify for a cannabis prescription. He also cleared the way for any doctor in the state to prescribe cannabis, ending a system in which only those physicians who registered -- and thus, joined a publicly available list of providers - -- could do so. He said some doctors had been reluctant to participate in the program because they viewed joining the list as a stigma. Hefler, Jan Philadelphia Daily News Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-31 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n089/a02.html Daily Herald, 19 Mar 2018 - Historically opioid medications were used cautiously by physicians for selected patients to reduce pain associated with acute injury or illness, and for those suffering from life-threatening diseases such as cancer. This caution was based upon recognition that improper use of opioids could result in patient harm. However, in 1996, the American Pain Society, supported by opioid pharmaceutical manufacturers, promoted acknowledgment and expanded treatment of pain as the 'fifth vital sign" by physicians in hospitals. In 2001, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations introduced new pain standards recognizing the under-assessment and treatment of pain, which then expanded the use of opioids. In the two decades that followed opioid use and abuse has exploded, with nearly 80 percent of the world's opioid medications now being consumed in the U.S. Robb, William Daily Herald Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-22 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n085/a07.html Globe and Mail, 12 Mar 2018 - Curtis McGowan wrestled with his opioid addiction for years, but his suspected overdose while in prison raises serious questions On one of his many trips home from jail, Curtis McGowan beamed with pride and clutched a Dr. Seuss book. White, Patrick Globe and Mail Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-16 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n085/a04.html Globe and Mail, 10 Mar 2018 - The life-saving drug may actually increase opioid abuse. Here's why My friendly local pharmacy has started selling naloxone kits to the general public. They think everyone should have one. The idea is that you never know when you're going to have someone overdose in your home. Wente, Margaret Globe and Mail Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-10 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n079/a08.html Los Angeles Times, 06 Mar 2018 - For years, doctors turned to opioid painkillers as a first-line treatment for chronic back pain and aches in the joints. Even as the dangers of addiction and overdoses became more clear, the drugs' pain-relieving benefits were still thought to justify their risks. Now researchers have hard data that challenges this view. Kaplan, Karen Los Angeles Times Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-09 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n074/a02.html Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01 Mar 2018 - SARASOTA - When the Drug Enforcement Administration was formed in 1973, roughly 2,000 Americans were dying from overdoses each week, largely from heroin injections. In 2016 alone, thanks to a deregulated pharmaceutical industry, fatal overdoses -- 80 percent opioid related - -- claimed 63,000 lives. Or, as Peter Bensinger pointed out Thursday morning, opium-derived drugs have exacted a higher death toll in a single year than nearly two decades of fighting in the Vietnam War. Cox, Billy Sarasota Herald-Tribune Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-03-05 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n071/a09.html Hartford Courant, 26 Feb 2018 - People who were addicted to opioids and those who lost loved ones to opioid overdoses offered emotional testimony Monday urging state officials to approve medical marijuana as an alternative painkiller that could help halt Connecticut's deadly opioid epidemic. "My passion and drive to achieve this is fueled by my personal experience battling pharmaceutical drug addiction solely with the use of cannabis," Cody Roberts of Seymour told the state Board of Physicians, which is charged with approving conditions for the state's medical marijuana program. Roberts testified he's lost eight friends in the past year to opioid overdoses, and has been addicted himself. Hladky, Gregory B. Hartford Courant Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-02-28 http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v18/n057/a02.html The Calgary Sun, 11 Feb 2018 - Following the death of her son Conner in 2013, Yvonne Clark has been sharing her story with students and parents across the region. In presentations to young people ranging from Grade 6 to Grade 12, Clark talks about her family's experience, about the dangers of fentanyl, and about the growing number of Albertans who have died of opioid overdoses. Cole, Yolande The Calgary Sun Oxycontin/Oxycodone 2018-02-11 http://www.mapinc.org/find?186 DrugSense Search MAP BK http://mapinc.org/find