Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Experts Hammer Home Importance Of Treatment And Education At Hearing On Opioid Crisis
Ohio's spike in opioid overdoses and deaths is a public health problem that requires an urgent influx of resources to treat addiction, stem the supply of prescription narcotics, and educate children and parents about the dangers, law enforcement officials and health experts said Friday. (Ross, 4/23)
A showdown is looming in the Missouri statehouse over an effort to make Missouri the final state in the nation to gain a prescription drug monitoring program. State Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, has promised to filibuster House Bill 1892, which would let doctors check a database before giving patients a prescription for opioid painkillers, and require pharmacists to report filling opioid prescriptions within 24 hours. (Phillips, 4/24)
The founder of a Detroit-based drug recovery program is being recognized at the White House amid efforts to respond to a nationwide problem with prescription opioid and heroin abuse. (4/22)