Latest California Healthline Stories
Among Hurdles For Those With Opioid Addictions: Getting The Drug To Treat It
It can be difficult to get a prescription for buprenorphine, one of the gold standards for treating opioid use disorder. And not all pharmacies stock the drug.
Doctors Can Change Opioid Prescribing Habits, But Progress Comes In Small Doses
Research out Wednesday indicates that guidelines are making strides in cutting back the number of pain pills doctors offer after specific types of surgeries.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Biden Doubles Down On Obamacare
Presidential candidate Joe Biden unveiled a health plan intended to provide a more moderate alternative to his competitors’ “Medicare for All” plans. It would build on the Affordable Care Act but would go much further. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus Planned Parenthood’s very bad week, the U.S. House vote to repeal the health law’s “Cadillac tax” on generous health plans, and the reduction in deaths from opioids.
Medicare Going In ‘Right Direction’ On Opioid Epidemic
A new report by the inspector general for HHS shows prescriptions to treat opioid addiction are way up in recent years, while prescriptions for the painkillers have fallen.
Sobering Up: In An Alcohol-Soaked Nation, More Seek Booze-Free Social Spaces
A national trend of boozeless bars is cropping up nationwide to create social spaces without the hangovers, DUIs and alcoholism culture. It’s part of a new push for sober options.
Florida Is The Latest Republican-Led State To Adopt Clean Needle Exchanges
Florida has struggled for years with opioid overdoses — and the highest rate of HIV infection in the U.S. Lawmakers now hope needle exchanges and a “harm reduction” approach could help save lives.
Florida es el último estado republicano en adoptar programa de intercambio de jeringas
Un programa piloto en el condado de Miami-Dade demostró la efectividad de esta intervención de salud pública. Una nueva ley podría ampliarla a otros condados.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
Meth In The Morning, Heroin At Night: Inside The Seesaw Struggle of Dual Addiction
Many users now mix opioids with stimulants like meth and cocaine — and researchers believe opioids kicked off this new stimulant wave.
Federal Grants ‘A Lifesaver’ In Opioid Fight, But States Still Struggle To Curb Meth
The federal government has doled out at least $2.4 billion in state grants since 2017 to address the opioid epidemic, which killed 47,600 people in the U.S. that year alone. But local officials note that drug abuse problems seldom involve only one substance.