written for Inspire Malibu
At the end of January 2019, officials at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection declared a seizure of fentanyl powder and pills – 254 pounds in total – the largest in history. It was enough of the deadly synthetic opioid to kill an estimated 100 million Americans. The haul came through Mexico, in a truck packed with cucumbers, but the fentanyl shipment began its journey in China.
written for Inspire Malibu
It’s easy to forget that not every country in the world approaches issues of drug abuse and addiction as if it were a war. In fact, federal and state laws on illegal drug use in the United States seem uncompassionate at best and barbaric at worst, when compared to some other developed nations.
As the nation comes t
o recognize drug abuse and addiction as a public health issue rather than a moral failing or lack of character that far too many people are incarcerated for, harm reduction strategies have leapt to the forefront. These tactics are taking on new forms and making advances that save lives.
written for Inspire Malibu
A little more than a week ago, on August 10, President Trump announced plans to declare a national emergency in lieu of the nation’s crisis of opioid overdose deaths. According to the White House’s own survey, opioid related fatalities now kill 142 Americans every single day.
written for Inspire Malibu
August 2, 2017
There’s good news and bad news. The number of prescriptions for opioid painkillers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is in decline. Since 2010, the peak of opioid prescriptions, the agency tracked a 41 percent decrease. However, the analysis also revealed the prescribing rate is still three times higher than in 1999, near the beginning of America’s opioid crisis.
Written for Inspire Malibu
March 21, 2017
Nestled between Columbus and Cincinnati, Washington Court House, Ohio, a town with little more than 14,000 residents at last count, is now charging drug overdose survivors with “inducing panic.” The misdemeanor, which can result in a $1,000 fine and up to 180 days in jail, is levied immediately after first responders save a victim’s life, in most cases, with naloxone, a drug that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose.