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Among US counties containing the nation’s 10 largest cities, Cook county, Illinois – where Chicago is located – has seen the largest reduction in overdose deaths since the national peak of the crisis in 2023, by 37%, according to an exclusive Guardian analysis. (Green and Kiefer, 10/17)

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement on Thursday reported a significant drop in drug-related fatalities last year across the state. According to the data, total drug-related deaths in 2024 decreased by 14% statewide. The sharpest reductions were seen in opioid-related fatalities, with opioid-caused deaths dropping 32% and fentanyl-caused deaths decreasing by 35%. (Bustos, 10/16)

Overdose deaths continued to rise in some communities across the US even as they declined nationally in 2024, according to an exclusive data analysis by the Guardian, which found wide geographical disparities in fatalities linked to the public health crisis. (Green and Kiefer, 10/17)

Â鶹ŮÓÅ Health News: After Chiding Democrats On Transgender Politics, Newsom Vetoes A Key Health Measure

California Gov. Gavin Newsom this week signed a suite of privacy protection bills for transgender patients amid continuing threats by the Trump administration. But there was one glaring omission that LGBTQ+ advocates and political strategists say is part of an increasingly complex dance the Democrat faces as he curates a more centrist profile for a potential presidential bid. (Mai-Duc, 10/17)

Connecticut is one of only a handful of states without a law banning female genital mutilation and cutting, a human rights violation and one of the most extreme forms of gender-based violence. FGM/C, as the practice is often abbreviated, can be done for cultural reasons or a way to exert control over sexuality. It is most often performed on young girls without their consent, has no medical value, and can result in severe medical complications like obstructed childbirth and sensory deprivation. (Mithani and Rummler, 10/16)

Mental health distress among LGBTQ+ youth in the United States has been increasing amid a surge in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, but strong support networks and access to health care were shown to ease symptoms for some, a study found. The findings were published Thursday by The Trevor Project, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization that provides crisis intervention and suicide prevention services. Researchers followed 1,689 LGBTQ+ young people between the ages of 13 and 24 between September 2023 and March 2025. (Cutrona, 10/16)

The first US case of locally acquired clade 1 mpox has been reported in Long Beach, California, according to city and state health authorities. The clade 1 case is the nation's first in a person with no recent travel history and the seventh clade 1 case in the country. The patient required hospitalization and is now isolating and recovering at home, the City of Long Beach news release said. (Van Beusekom, 10/16)

The US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has reported dozens of new H5N1 avian flu detections in wild waterfowl in several states, and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has published an epidemiologic update tallying 76 human H5N1 cases, including 2 deaths, in five countries in the Americas in the past 4 years. (Van Beusekom, 10/16)

The water isn’t always brown, but Scarlet Weathers lives like it is. Not once has she drank the tap water from her kitchen sink in her house in Sweeny. She knows, like everyone else in the town, that it can’t be trusted. Even her small grandchildren have noticed it during bathtime. Why is the water brown? (Bruess, 10/16)