Mexican drug cartels are manufacturing and distributing large quantities of counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl throughout North America, according to a Nov. 4 warning from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Public Health
The opioid epidemic cost the nation $696 billion in 2018, representing 3.4 percent of gross domestic product, according to a new estimate from the Council of Economic Advisors.
A wildfire tearing through Northern California has prompted multiple patient evacuations throughout the region.
Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth aims to improve patients' access to substance abuse treatment through a new partnership with Seminole County, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
Hundreds of hospitals have filed lawsuits separate from the ongoing federal opioid trial accusing drugmakers of fueling the opioid crisis, according to NPR.
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Below is a timeline of opioid settlements that have been reached since January, reported by Becker's Hospital Review. The timeline doesn't include opioid settlements that are still pending or have been agreed to in principle, including a proposed settlement from…
Four states agreed Oct. 21 on a framework for a $48 billion settlement with five drug companies over their alleged role in fueling the opioid crisis, according to The Hill.
The opioid crisis cost the U.S. at least $631 billion from 2015 to 2018, with healthcare costs constituting a third of the economic loss, according to a study released Oct. 15 by the Society of Actuaries.
Jamestown, N.Y.-based UPMC Chautauqua was slated to open a methadone clinic to address growing opioid misuse among residents, but internal state decisions ultimately thwarted the plans, according to the Observer.
A federal judge on Oct. 2 ruled that Philadelphia's proposed supervised injection site does not violate federal law, representing a landmark decision that could alter how opioid use disorder is treated in the U.S., reports The Washington Post.