Latest California Healthline Stories
A Dying Man’s Wish To Save Others Hits Hospital Ethics Hurdle
One terminally ill man’s hope to be disconnected from his respirator and donate his organs was almost thwarted, despite his best laid plans.
A Peer Recovery Coach Walks The Frontlines Of The Opioid Epidemic
Charlie Oen was addicted to heroin as a teenager. At 25, he’s now clean and a peer counselor in Lima, Ohio, where he tries to help people who started using drugs before he was born.
Delivered ‘Like A Pizza’: Why Killer Drug Fentanyl Is So Hard To Stop
Just a few grains of pure fentanyl is enough to kill most users. But law enforcement sources say stopping the supply of the deadly synthetic opioid from China and Mexico is very difficult.
Trump’s Pick To Run Medicare And Medicaid Has Red State Policy Chops
Seema Verma is a consultant who was Vice President-elect Mike Pence’s health policy advisor when he was governor of Indiana, playing a key role in Medicaid expansion in that state.
Laughing Gas For Labor Pain? It’s Poised For A Comeback
Nitrous oxide for laboring women was popular in the U.S. until the mid-20th century when it went out of favor when birth became more medicalized. Now, midwives are putting it back on the “menu” of pain relief options for childbirth.
Maverick AIDS Activist To Porn Police? The Man Behind California’s Proposition 60
Michael Weinstein of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation says he is promoting condoms where others have forgotten them.
Would California’s Proposed Tobacco Tax Hike Reduce Smoking?
When New York increased its cigarette tax, smoking rates declined. California’s proposed increase of $2 a pack may, too, say researchers. The higher the tax, the more likely people are to quit.
Kratom Gets Reprieve From Drug Enforcement Administration
The agency has decided to leave kratom off its list of highly restricted drugs for now. The DEA is asking for public comment and help from the Food and Drug Administration in evaluating kratom.
Rehab For Addiction Usually Lasts 28 Days. But Why?
A month’s stay in a rehab facility became the standard of care for alcoholism. But there’s little research to support that length of stay for people addicted to opioids.
Deadly Opioid Overwhelms First Responders And Crime Labs in Ohio
Carfentanil, a potent variation on fentanyl, is being blamed for a wave of opioid overdoses. In Cincinnati, the coroner, crime lab and first responders are struggling to keep up.