Public Health

Action is needed to tackle the ever-growing problem of opioid addiction, but the National Institutes of Health's initiative to combat the epidemic won't address its complex root causes, contends an anonymous editorial in Nature.

An analysis of opioid-related deaths and the zip codes where they happened illustrated a widespread rise in fatal overdoses all over Philadelphia, according to The Inquirer.

Since 2014, the number of children introduced into foster and state care systems has increased due to parent-related overdoses, relapses or prolonged recovery, according to The Hill.

Cigna wants to slash the number of opioid overdoses by 25 percent among its commercial members living in communities hit hard by the opioid epidemic.

On June 18, the New York Department of Health announced opioid use now qualifies patients for medical marijuana to treat chronic pain, according to WIVB4.com.

Starting June 19, Facebook users looking to purchase opioids or seek addiction treatment will be redirected to information about a federal crisis help line — a move to curb illicit drug sales on its platform, STAT reports.

A recent study conducted by the Ohio Alliance for Innovation in Population Health accounted for 519,471 years of lost life expectancy, according to Market Watch.

Programs dedicated to monitoring prescription drug use in Kentucky, New Mexico, Tennessee and New York have significantly reduced opioid prescriptions, according to research published in Health Affairs.

A recent blog post by Allscripts discusses the recent Modern Healthcare Opioid Crisis Symposium and what stakeholders, business leaders, clinicians, health system leaders, and more had to say.

Congress should implement federal policies to better support trauma-informed treatment approaches for victims of the opioid crisis, as childhood trauma is a major driver of addiction, Marlo Nash, senior vice president of public policy and mobilization for the Alliance for…