The Wednesday Weekly Addiction + Recovery News Clips - February 7, 2024
The Wednesday Weekly is a collaboration of Sober Linings Playbook and Recovery in the Middle Ages Podcast.
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Highlights
National
Does sobriety/recovery require abstinence? | U.S. permanently eases some opioid treatment restrictions
State and Local
Oregon considers alcohol taxes, continues to reconsider Measure 110 | Washington State Rep. Lekanoff speaks about personal story of addiction, recovery
Studies/Research in the News
Study finds addiction treatment scarce for U.S. teens | Experimental painkiller could be alternative to opioids
Opinion
The role of responsibility in addiction | Does San Francisco suffer from a “pro-drug” culture?
Books and Movies
Review: “The White Chip” is a witty, fizzy show about addiction and recovery | “Days of Wine and Roses”: the musical
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National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Comments
National
What Does Being Sober Mean Today? For Many, Not Full Abstinence.
More younger Americans are shunning alcohol while embracing cannabis, ketamine and psychedelics, shaking up the field of addiction medicine. Dr. Nora Volkow, a psychiatrist who since 2003 has led the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a division of the National Institutes of Health, said she was trained to think that “the only way out of an addiction is total and full sobriety.” Over the years, she said, she came to see that as unrealistic for some patients.
New York Times - Feb. 4, 2024
U.S. permanently eases some opioid treatment restrictions
Pandemic-era policies that made it easier for patients to receive opioid addiction treatment will continue permanently, the Biden administration announced this week.
Axios - Feb. 2, 2024
Methadone to treat opioid addiction will be easier to get soon under new rule
As drug deaths surged above 112,000 a year in the U.S., driven by the spread of the synthetic opioid fentanyl, addiction experts have pointed to a troubling paradox. Proven medications, including methadone, have been shown to save lives, cutting the risk of relapses and fatal overdoses by nearly 60%. Yet they are rarely prescribed. Now for the first time in more than 20 years, the Biden administration is publishing new federal rules for methadone treatment aimed at widening access for more patients.
NPR - Feb. 2, 2024
Sam Quinones on the Fentanyl Crisis and Opioid Addiction in the U.S
Journalist and author Sam Quinones talked about the fentanyl crisis and opioid addiction in the U.S. and efforts to address them.
Washington Journal - Feb. 2, 2024
Talkspace Partners with Bicycle Health to Break Down Barriers to Mental Health and Addiction Care
Virtual mental health provider Talkspace (Nasdaq: TALK) has inked a deal with digital addiction operator Bicycle Health to provide both companies’ patients with access to both therapy and opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment.
Behavioral Health Business - Feb. 2, 2024
Andrea Palm, deputy secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, on overdose prevention and addiction treatment
Andrea Palm, the deputy secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, visited Philadelphia on Wednesday to speak about the city’s opioid crisis with patients and staff at the Girard Behavioral Wellness Center, an addiction treatment center in North Philadelphia. “For a place like Philly, some challenges are access to care and workforce challenges — having enough folks in the [addiction treatment] field, and the capacity to treat people.”
Philadelphia Inquirer - Feb. 1, 2024
New rule changes makes telehealth and addiction treatment rules permanent
Back in October, we told you the DEA extended some telehealth rules that expanded access to medication that treats addiction. On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services confirmed those rules will be permanent.
KATU - Feb. 1, 2024
Press Release: Biden-Harris Administration Marks Two Years of Advancements in HHS’ Overdose Prevention Strategy with New Actions to Treat Addiction and Save Lives
Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) marked two years of its Overdose Prevention Strategy (Strategy) by announcing bold new actions to combat overdoses. Actions announced today build on President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy - PDF and his Unity Agenda call-to-action to address the overdose epidemic and save lives.
U.S. Health and Human Services - Feb. 1, 2024
Women Need Addiction Treatment, Too
There has been an increased rate of drug overdoses among pregnant and postpartum women since 2017. Gender-responsive residential treatment can offer advantages for women. Because of social pressures, family obligations, and financial realities, women often delay their treatment.
Psychology Today - Feb. 1, 2024
How Mitch Ammons Overcame Addiction to Qualify for the Olympic Marathon Trials (runnersworld.com)
A long time ago—before he’d freebased opioids or robbed his best friend or checked himself into rehab for the sixth time—Mitch Ammons had dreams of a future involving running. Ammons, at 34, is legitimately racing against some of the top distance runners in the country, pushing the limits of what should be possible, and living a dream that is almost incomprehensible.
Runner’s World - Jan. 31, 2024
Why are people afraid of the most popular opioid addiction treatment?
Often known by the brand name Suboxone, buprenorphine is a medication that blocks a person’s cravings for stronger opioids without offering much of a high and prevents symptoms of painful withdrawal. Decades of research have found that buprenorphine helps people reduce their illegal drug use, improve their quality of life and lower their risk of premature death by 50%. But the rise of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl has made it harder to use this highly effective treatment. If someone takes buprenorphine while other opioids are still in their system, they can be plunged into sudden and intense withdrawal known as precipitated withdrawal.
Illinois Public Media - Jan. 30, 2024
Records Show Publix Opioid Sales Grew Even as Addiction Crisis Prompted Other Chains’ Pullback
An executive at Teva Pharmaceuticals flagged Publix Super Markets in October 2015 after detecting what he called in an email “serious red flags” with the grocery chain’s orders of powerful opioids. While national pharmacy chains like CVS and Walgreens were dispensing fewer of the highly addictive drugs, Publix’s sales were soaring. There is no mention of Publix’s role on a state webpage touting the 10 opioid settlements reached during Ashley Moody’s tenure as attorney general. That’s despite Publix being the third-biggest dispenser of opioids in the state. Moody, a Republican, took over as the state’s top legal official in January 2019. Her office declined to specifically address why Florida has not included Publix in any of its legal actions over opioids.
KFF - Jan. 29, 2024
National State and Local Studies in the News Opinion Reviews Comments
State / Local
California: Santa Cruz's newest sobering center aims to help, not punish those with drug addiction
On Thursday, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office opened a Sobriety Center on Water Street in Santa Cruz. The sheriff’s office said the center will give law enforcement an alternative approach to fighting substance abuse crimes in the county while offering people the recovery services they may need. When someone is arrested for a substance abuse crime, they will be taken to the sobering center instead of the jail. At the center, patients will be treated by substance recovery support staff from a local recovery program — Janus, who will connect the patients to a case manager and if the patients choose to, they can start a recovery treatment there. The Santa Cruz County sheriff said the center will clear their deputies for other calls and save lives.
KSBW - Feb. 2, 2024
New Mexico chosen for national trauma-informed initiative against addiction
The New Mexico Human Services Department announced that it has been selected to participate in a national pilot program that centers trauma in tackling substance abuse disorders. This pioneering program, titled “Implementing a Trauma-Informed Approach to Reduce Addiction and Overdose,” looks at substance use through the lens of how it impacts children's development and well-being, HSD said in a statement.
KFOX 14 - Feb. 1, 2024
Oregon: Drug addiction, mental health will dominate session, lawmakers say
Sending people to jail for possession of small amounts of drugs while also boosting treatment for addiction will be at the top of lawmakers’ minds as they gather in Salem next week. At a preview of the upcoming legislative session, lawmakers on Wednesday made clear that the 35-day session will be dominated by conflicting visions for modifying Measure 110, the controversial voter-approved 2020 ballot measure that decriminalized possession of drugs such as meth and opioids.
The Lund Report - Feb. 1, 2024
Washington: State representative hopes coming forward about addiction will inspire others to seek help
During her six years in Olympia, state Representative Debra Lekanoff has focused on legislation regarding salmon recovery and celebrating Native American heritage. But this session Lekanoff is focusing on another issue she has a personal passion for: addiction and recovery. “I'm a fresh recovering addict who came out of recovery just a few months ago," Lekanoff said. "I don't think I would have stepped into recovery and continued the work I'm doing today unless I realized I wasn't alone."
King5 - Jan. 31, 2024
Oregon: Task force on alcohol taxes, addiction gets to work
A longtime proponent of taxes on beer and wine is now in charge of a state task force studying the public health impacts of alcohol abuse and whether to raise alcohol taxes for addiction treatment.
Blue Mountain Eagle - Jan. 31, 2024
Oregon: Amid the pain of addiction, few pin their hopes on the government
Democratic lawmakers have released their framework of a sweeping proposal that would unwind the decriminalization of drug possession, allowing police to arrest and charge people with a low-level misdemeanor that carries up to 30 days in jail, a fine or both. The catch: people could avoid the charge if they entered a treatment program. The complex proposal has other parts, like increasing opioid treatment medication in jails, expanding clinics and setting up more housing to help people in recovery. A range of people are skeptical about the proposal or outright oppose it.
Oregon Capital Chronicle - Jan. 30, 2024
Oregon: What Oregon’s drug crisis looks like on the streets of Portland: Overdoses every day
State legislators will spend much of the next month debating whether to scrap Measure 110, Oregon’s voter-approved effort at drug decriminalization. Their decision will directly impact the first responders who deal with drug addiction on the streets of Portland. But has decriminalization caused the spike in overdoses and public use, or has it simply made the crisis impossible to ignore?
Oregon Public Broadcasting - Jan. 30, 2024
Oregon: Kotek and Portland-area leaders forge coordinated response to fentanyl addiction
Gov. Tina Kotek and leaders from Portland and Multnomah County on Tuesday declared a 90-day state of emergency to address the fentanyl addiction and overdose crisis that is plaguing Portland’s central city. Kotek, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson signed executive orders that will enable the three agencies to set up a command center that will allow city, county and state employees to coordinate and work together to try to rein in the addiction crisis in Portland’s downtown area.
Oregon Capital Chronicle - Jan. 30, 2024
National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Comments
Studies/Research in the News
OHSU study co-authored by Vancouver addiction specialist finds addiction treatment scarce for teenagers in Washington, around U.S.
A study published by Oregon Health & Science University in January found that access to residential addiction treatment for teens in the United States is scarce and expensive.
The Guardian - Feb. 2, 2024
This experimental painkiller could be alternative to addictive opioids
An experimental drug could be a vital player in the plight to end the opioid epidemic. It's known as VX-548, and its creator, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, said Tuesday the drug's use in late-stage clinical trials resulted in "clinically meaningful reduction in pain," without many of the risks associated with opioids.
Scripps News - Feb. 1, 2024
Researchers Unveil New Approach to Flip the Script on Drug Addiction
Scientists at the University of California San Diego are working to flip the script on drug addiction with a $1.3 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation. Their new approach, called negative feedback chemogenetics, works by leveraging the body’s biochemical feedback processes to disrupt pathways in the brain associated with drug addiction.
UC San Diego - Feb. 1, 2024
Can a Brain Implant Treat Addiction?
In recent years, scientists have explored treating these intractable cases of opioid dependence with deep brain stimulation (DBS), an intervention that entails surgically implanting an electrode into a precisely determined region of the brain, where it delivers regular pulses to control problematic electric signals. For researchers attempting to study its efficacy for addiction, the procedure’s invasiveness and cost—typically in the hundreds of thousands of dollars—have raised steep hurdles. So far, the results have been mixed.
Smithsonian - Jan. 31, 2024
National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Comments
Opinion
Responsibility is factor in drug addiction
Advocates say we should show empathy, encourage addicts to get professional help, and provide shelter, food, and clothing. I agree. We should also be patient. We should never give up believing that individuals can kick drug or alcohol addiction. But we must also recognize that addicts and alcoholics must accept responsibility for their actions. They will never overcome addiction, no matter how much help they get, until they decide to get sober. And they must put in the hard work required to beat addiction.
Niagra Gazette - Feb. 2, 2024
What It's Like to Be an Addict – and Homeless
Transit is a non-profit organization in Brussels that’s welcomed homeless people with addiction since 1995. The programme allows drug users to stay at a recovery facility for 13 days, and receive medical and psychological support. The focus is not on ending the patients’ drug use entirely, but helping them control their consumption to minimize risks. I met some of [the participants] in their new, temporary home to hear more about their journey.
Vice - Feb. 1, 2024
San Francisco’s “Pro-Drug Culture”
But the city’s drug crisis is relatively new. In 2018, San Francisco’s overdose death rate roughly matched the national average. Last year, its death rate was more than double the national level. I recently spent time in San Francisco to understand what is going on. In today’s newsletter, I want to explain one of the factors that has contributed to the city’s crisis: culture. In San Francisco the culture has become more tolerant of people using drugs.
New York Times - Jan. 31, 2024
National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Comments
Books and Movies
'The White Chip' review — a witty, fizzy show about addiction recovery
Sean Daniels's The White Chip is an autobiographical story about a man who, drink (after drink) in hand, takes gambles — though not with money, but with his livelihood. The title refers to the token Alcoholics Anonymous attendees receive on day one — or potentially multiple day ones — of sobriety. At one point in the play, Steven (the stand-in for Daniels, played by Joe Tapper) acquires enough to fill a fishbowl.
New York Theatre Guide - Jan. 31, 2024
'Days of Wine and Roses,' a film about addiction, is now a Broadway musical
Sometimes, the most intriguing musicals come from the most unlikely sources. A new Broadway show, based on the 1962 film Days of Wine and Roses, as well as its 1958 teleplay, opened Sunday night. The movie is about an attractive couple, played by Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon, who are alcoholics.
NPR - Jan. 29, 2024
National State/Local Studies/Research Opinion Reviews Podcasts Comments