Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Combating The 'Tide Of Cheaper, More Accessible Heroin'
A startling report released this week from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that deaths from heroin overdoses have quadrupled in a decade – and that the initiation drug for developing an addiction was most often prescription opioid painkillers like Vicodin, OxyContin and morphine. ... Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the CDC, is on the front lines of combating addiction to prescription painkillers and heroin. He recently spoke with U.S. News about how the drug became so widespread in the U.S. in such a short time, and what policies could enact change. (Leonard, 7/10)
Heroin use in the United States has climbed dramatically during the past decade, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During the years 2011 to 2013, 2.6 per 1,000 U.S. residents aged 12 and older used heroin — a rate that was 63 percent higher than in 2002 to 2004. That increase has occurred across a broad range of demographic groups: men and women, most age groups and all income levels. (Perry, 7/9)
