State-Approved Needle Exchange Political Hot Topic In Local Elections: ‘We Don’t Have To Fight About Who Hates It More’
The exchange program has caused a heated reaction from residents and local officials who live in the areas that will be served by the initiative.
Los Angeles Times:
Costa Mesa Extends Its Ban On Needle-Exchange Programs
Needle-exchange programs will remain banned in Costa Mesa until at least next summer after the City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to extend an urgency ordinance prohibiting the establishment or operation of such services in town. With the extension, the ordinance — first adopted Aug. 7 for a 45-day period — is now in place through Aug. 5, 2019. (Money, 9/5)
In other news on the opioid crisis —
Medpage Today:
How Calif. Medical Board's Opioid Accusations Went Down
If one had to identify a physician to symbolize its "Death Certificate Project," an aggressive effort by the Medical Board of California to nab doctors who overprescribe opioids, a likely candidate would be Harold S. Budhram, MD, of Shasta Lake. (All cities named in this article are in California.) Triggered by deaths of two of his patients attributed to opioid overdoses, the board investigated his practice and, in April, filed a 39-page complaint listing 16 separate accusations. (Clark, 9/5)