The Wednesday Weekly Addiction + Recovery News Clips - October 5, 2022
The Wednesday Weekly is a collaboration of Sober Linings Playbook and Recovery in the Middle Ages Podcast.
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Highlights
National
Hospitals need more addiction specialists | How McKinsey got into the business of addiction
Fentanyl
Luring kids with “Rainbow” fentanyl and other fentanyl myths | U.S. Ambassador warns China sanctions hurt fight against fentanyl
State and Local
San Francisco supervisors unveil roadmap to reduce ODs | OD deaths surpassed COVID deaths in Nashville during pandemic
Opinion
Maia Szalavitz warns against viewing current drug crises as separate from those of the past | Why a video game developer won’t let daughters play video games
Books and Movies
Pete Doherty documentary reveals depths of his addiction
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National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Podcasts Comments
National
You may need a Sober October more than you think
Sober October, Dry January and Dry July: For one quarter of a year, these campaigns provide a motivation for people to come together and challenge themselves to go without alcohol. It isn’t a surprise to Annie Grace that these periods to reduce alcohol consumption are becoming more popular. The author of “This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol” said she is seeing more and more people evaluate the relationship that alcohol plays in their lives.
CNN - Oct. 2, 2022
John Stamos opens up about his drunk driving arrest and why rehab was 'the hardest thing ever'
John Stamos is looking at back at his struggle with alcoholism and arrest for driving under the influence. While the Full House star, 59, has found peace as a husband and father in the present, things weren't always so stable for the actor and musician. In a new interview, Stamos says his drinking became so troublesome that he became passively suicidal, not caring what happened to him.
Yahoo! - Oct. 2, 2022
Horrific crash prompts calls for alcohol-detection systems in all new cars
Following the completed investigation of a devastating crash that claimed the lives of nine, including seven children, transportation officials have recommended that all new vehicles sold in the United States come equipped with alcohol-detection systems to prevent drunk driving.
SiLive - Sept. 30, 2022
Hospitals have specialists on call for lots of diseases — but not addiction. Why not?
Hospitals typically employ all sorts of specialists who focus on critical organs like hearts, lungs and kidneys — or who treat systemic or chronic diseases of the immune system or the brain. There are specialists for children, for mental illness, for childbirth and hospice. But if your illness is an addiction or a condition related to drug or alcohol use, there are few hospitals where patients can see a clinician — whether that be an M.D., nurse, therapist or social worker — who specializes in addiction medicine.
NPR - Sept. 30, 2022
How McKinsey Got Into the Business of Addiction
The consulting firm’s work with opioid makers is well known, but for decades McKinsey worked with Big Tobacco and has also advised Juul, the e-cigarette company.
New York Times - Sept. 29, 2022
Senators Press Pentagon for Answers on Rash of Overdose Deaths
Congress has finally taken notice of an unprecedented wave of fatalities at Fort Bragg, some 17 months after Rolling Stone first brought attention to an apparent drug crisis at the base. This morning, a group of five senators led by Sen. Edward Markey demanded answers from the military on the subject of overdose deaths in the armed forces, in a letter sent to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Lisa Murkowski, John Cornyn, and Martin Heinrich were also signatories to the letter, which posed six questions to the Pentagon, starting with, “How many active military service members overdosed from January 1, 2017 to present?” The letter referenced Rolling Stone’s most recent report, published in the September issue, on rising overdose deaths at Fort Bragg, and in the U.S. Army more generally. “In light of this disturbing trend,” the letter reads, “we write seeking a full understanding of the pattern of overdoses.”
Rolling Stone - Sept. 29, 2022
Pioneering Middlesbrough heroin addiction clinic to close
A ground-breaking clinic for people tackling heroin addiction is set to close because funding has run out. The Heroin Assisted Treatment (HAT) programme in Middlesbrough was the first of its kind in England when it opened three years ago. It is offered to patients who have exhausted all other options and allows them to self-administer diamorphine twice daily under medical supervision. Clinicians have described the decision to end funding as "ludicrous".
BBC - Sept. 29, 2022
Meta Rivals Want No Part of Defending Its Many Addiction Suits
Meta Platforms Inc. says social media companies should stick together in a fight against dozens of lawsuits alleging they harm young people. Snap Inc., TikTok Inc., and Google say they’d rather go it alone.
Bloomberg - Sept. 29, 2022
Opioid Crisis Cost U.S. Nearly $1.5 Trillion in 2020-Congressional Report
Fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic toll of the opioid addiction and overdose crisis on the United States reached nearly $1.5 trillion in 2020 alone and is likely to grow, a congressional report seen by Reuters shows. TheCongressional Joint Economic Committee (JEC) that issued the report said in a Wednesday report that after adapting a method used by CDC scientists and adjusting for inflation, it found that the crisis cost the U.S. economy $1.47 trillion in 2020, a $487 billion increase from 2019.
Reuters - Sept. 28, 2022
How Physician Documentation and Coding Can Combat the Opioid Crisis
More than 10 million people misuse opioids every year, according to the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics. Overdose deaths involving opioids increased 519.38% from 1999 to 2019. These and similarly alarming statistics are why the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officially declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency in 2017. More recently, HHS announced it will provide nearly $1.5 billion to states and territories to help address the opioid epidemic. The grant funding opportunity will be available through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published updated draft guidance on when to initiate opioid prescribing, selection and dosage, duration and follow-up, and assessing risks and addressing harm.
Medical Economics - Sept. 28, 2022
Fentanyl
Fentanyl Test Strips Highlight Rift in Nation’s Struggle to Combat Drug Deaths
Proponents say the ability to check drugs for the presence of lethal fentanyl may save lives. But critics say the strips enable drug use.
New York Times - Oct. 1, 2022
Fentanyl’s Ubiquity Inflames America’s Drug Crisis
The synthetic opioid, whether on its own or in tainted heroin, cocaine, Adderall and other drugs, has spread to every corner of the illegal drug market and is driving overdose deaths to records.
Wall Street Journal - Sept. 30, 2022
No One Is Luring Kids With 'Rainbow Fentanyl’
On Aug. 30, the Drug Enforcement Administration warned America’s parents about the “emerging trend” of colored fentanyl pills. According to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram, the color of the pills is a, “deliberate effort by drug traffickers to drive addiction amongst kids and young adults.” But is it? From stoking hysteria about reefer fiends in the 1940s to warnings of the coming epidemic of “crack-babies” in the 1980s, forces within the United States have long used misinformation about drugs to advance various political and social agendas.
LifeHacker - Sept. 29, 2022
Exclusive: Chinese Ambassador Warns Sanctions Hurt Fight Against Fentanyl Flow to U.S.
As the United States continues to grapple with an opioid crisis, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Qin Gang told Newsweek Senior Foreign Policy Writer Tom O'Connor that the flow of the epidemic's deadliest drug, fentanyl, was not being fueled by Beijing, but that the People's Republic could be of assistance in further cracking down on its proliferation.
Newsweek - Sept. 29, 2022
State / Local
Massachusetts: Rep. LeBoeuf discusses sobriety, holding public office after OUI
State Rep. David H.A. LeBoeuf, D-Worcester, says he is not defined by his lowest moment, an April arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol, and says he has taken the steps to live a healthier life since that fateful day.
Telegram & Gazette - Oct. 3, 2022
New Mexico: Some New Mexico Lawmakers Debate Higher Tax Rate for Alcohol
New Mexico has the worst rate in the nation for alcohol-related deaths at nearly 2,000 people per year and some lawmakers are debating whether the state tax on booze should be higher.
US News and World Report - Oct. 2, 2022
Kansas Employer’s Crew All in Substance Abuse Recovery
Securing a home or finding a job can be an obstacle for a former addict. However, one Wichita employer has dedicated his life and business to help people in recovery. At Kansas Tree Service, supporting one another is what the team lives by.
KSN.com - Sept. 30, 2022
San Francisco Releases Roadmap to Reduce Drug Overdoses and Promote Wellness and Recovery of People with Substance Use Disorders
Mayor London N. Breed and the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) today released a strategic roadmap to address drug overdose deaths in San Francisco, further building on the progress that has already been made in saving lives and promoting the recovery of people who use drugs. The plan sets ambitious goals of reducing overdoses in San Francisco by 15% by 2025; reducing racial disparities in overdose deaths by 30% by 2025; and increasing the number of people receiving medications for addiction treatment by 30% by 2025.
City and County of San Francisco - Sept. 28, 2022
Tennessee: More people have died from a fatal overdose than COVID-19 in Nashville
The opioid crisis is no stranger to Nashville, but now, new data from the Metro Health Department reveals how severe the deadly trend is. According to the Metro Nashville Health Department, since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020, more people have died from a suspected fatal overdose. That’s in Nashville alone.
WIAT - Sept. 28, 2022
West Virginia: Fentanyl Used To Drive Addiction In W.Va.: Youth Increasingly Targeted
From its original intended use as a narcotic for severe pain in cancer patients, the controlled substance fentanyl is being exploited at an alarming rate. U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram says mass overdose events - characterized as three or more overdoses within a close range of time at the same location - have increased.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting - Sept. 27, 2022
Virginia: Stigma, fear prevent N. Va. addicts from seeking treatment
People suffering from a drug addiction are too scared to seek treatment, according to a recent survey of Northern Virginia adults launched by the Act on Addiction awareness campaign. The survey shows that three in 10 local adults either suffer from addiction or know someone who suffers from one. But 46% say they would be afraid to seek care for substance use disorder or addiction out of fear of being judged. The Act on Addiction campaign was created with donations to the Inova Health Foundation to provide resources to combat addiction and to drive a community dialogue around the issue.
WTOP - Sept. 26, 2022
Opinion
I Make Video Games. I Won’t Let My Daughters Play Them
I am very familiar with game addiction, as that’s what I thought about every day for more than a decade. The ultimate goal: to build habit-forming games that have players coming back every day.
New York Times - Oct. 2, 2022
Maia Szalavitz: The Most Important Question About Addiction
It’s important to understand how drug use patterns change over time and not view them solely as isolated crises related to specific substances. People use drugs for reasons. Typically, those who become addicted struggle with hopelessness, trauma or mental illness — often all three. This economic and social pain is the commonality across drug crises. Until policymakers prioritize healing the distress that makes particular people and communities facing economic loss and trauma especially vulnerable to addiction, this vicious cycle will only continue.
New York Times - Sept. 29, 2022
Books and Movies
Pete Doherty to release documentary about depths of his addiction
Pete Doherty is releasing a documentary chronicling the addiction issues he experienced at the height of his fame. The 90-minute film, Peter Doherty: Stranger In My Own Skin, comes from more than 200 hours of footage filmed over a 10-year period by his partner, the director-musician Katia deVidas.
Independent - Oct. 4, 2022