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Calling it a hopeful trend, Sacramento County public health officials announced Monday that local hospitals have reported no new overdoses related to the painkiller fentanyl in nearly a week. Also Monday, the Sacramento County Coroner’s Office confirmed that eight of the region’s 10 overdose deaths over the past month were related to fentanyl. (Buck, 4/11)

The state said at least 1,263 Tennesseans died from opioid overdose in 2014, the most recent figure available and one that points to rampant abuse, misuse and addiction impacting millions of Tennesseans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For every one person who dies there are 851 people in various stages of misuse, abuse and treatment, according to the CDC. That's at least 1,074,813 Tennesseans, or 1 in 6. More people died in 2014 from opioid overdose than in car accidents in Tennessee. (Fletcher, 4/11)

In recent years, Tennessee policymakers have enacted a series of measures to combat the state's growing opioid problem. (Wadhwani, 4/11)