opioid addiction

In her new memoir, Smacked: A Story of White Collar Ambition, Addiction and Tragedy, writer Eilene Zimmerman traces the trajectory of her ex-husband's addiction to cocaine and opioids — and all the signs she missed.

A Widow, Not A Wife: 'Smacked' Explores An Ex-Husband's Secret Addiction

12:35pm February 05, 2020

by Terry Gross

Eilene Zimmerman didn't learn of her ex-husband's addiction to cocaine and opioids until after his death. "This had happened in front of us, and we hadn't recognized it," she says.

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Insys Therapeutics founder John Kapoor was convicted in a bribery and kickback scheme that prosecutors said helped fuel the opioid crisis.

Pharmaceutical Executive John Kapoor Sentenced To 66 Months In Prison In Opioid Trial

6:29pm January 23, 2020

His sentencing is the culmination of a months-long criminal trial that resulted in the first successful prosecution of pharmaceutical executives tied to the opioid epidemic.

Dr. Angela Gatzke-Plamann is the only full-time physician in Necedah, Wis., and the only physician in Juneau County, Wis., who has the required training to prescribe the addiction medicine buprenorphine.

Health & Safety

In Rural Areas Without Pain Or Addiction Specialists, Family Doctors Fill In The Gaps

8:26am December 30, 2019

by Bram Sable-Smith

In rural America, chronic pain and opioid addiction are common, but treatment is often harder to come by. In the village of Necedah, Wis., population 916, one doctor is changing that.

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The MX908 can check for the presence of fentanyl mixed with other drugs and such testing may help prevent overdoses. Sarah Mackin of the Boston Public Health Commission prepares the machine for testing some samples.

Health & Safety

Built For Counterterrorism, This High-Tech Machine Is Now Helping Fight Fentanyl

11:04am November 27, 2019

by Martha Bebinger

Public health officials are adopting a law-enforcement tool, the mass spectrometer, to instantly identify potentially deadly levels of opioids in local drug supplies.

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An infant is monitored for opioid withdrawal in a neonatal intensive care unit at the CAMC Women and Children's Hospital in Charleston, W.Va., in June. Infants exposed to opioids in utero often experience symptoms of withdrawal.

Health & Safety

In The Fight For Money For The Opioid Crisis, Will The Youngest Victims Be Left Out?

6:27pm November 22, 2019

by Blake Farmer

The opioid epidemic is intergenerational, with tens of thousands of babies born every year dependent on opioids. Advocates worry lawsuits against the drug industry might overlook these children.

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The Bristol Regional Medical Center, now part of Ballad Health, was among hundreds of hospitals that have joined lawsuits against opioid makers.

Health & Safety

Some Hospitals Sue Opioid Makers For Costs Of Treating Uninsured For Addiction

9:25am October 24, 2019

by Blake Farmer

A few hundred hospitals have banded together to sue drugmakers in state courts, but far more are staying on the sidelines to avoid 'unflattering attention' about their role in the opioid crisis.

Sometimes doctors rapidly taper their chronic pain patients' opioid doses. Now a federal agency recommends against this.

Health & Safety

Don't Force Patients Off Opioids Abruptly, New Guidelines Say, Warning Of Severe Risks

5:30pm October 10, 2019

Researchers say chronic pain patients can feel suicidal or risk overdose when taken off medication too quickly. The warnings seek to course-correct after doctors felt pressured to taper drugs rapidly.

Bags of heroin, some laced with fentanyl, picked up in a 2016 New York City drug bust. "Basically, [fentanyl] is so cheap to produce and it's so powerful, that drug dealers began realizing it was a way to increase their profits," Fentanyl, Inc. author Ben

Fentanyl As A Dark Web Profit Center, From Chinese Labs To U.S. Streets

2:51pm September 04, 2019

by Dave Davies

Fentanyl, Inc. author Ben Westhoff says the opioid, while useful in hospitals, is killing more Americans as a street drug than any other in U.S. history. Here's how it moves from China to your corner.

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Judge Thad Balkman ruled that Johnson & Johnson is responsible for fueling Oklahoma's opioid crisis. He announced his decision in Norman, Okla., Monday.

Health & Safety

Johnson & Johnson Ordered To Pay Oklahoma $572 Million In Opioid Trial

10:07pm August 26, 2019

In a landmark ruling, Judge Thad Balkman ruled in favor of Oklahoma in its lawsuit to hold the drugmaker accountable for the costs of opioid addiction in the state.

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Judge Thad Balkman will rule Monday in the Johnson & Johnson opioid trial.

Health & Safety

Oklahoma Judge To Rule In Landmark Opioid Case

3:16pm August 26, 2019

by Jackie Fortier

Oklahoma has argued that the drugmaker's marketing of painkillers contributed to thousands of overdose deaths and other harms in the state and is asking for a multibillion-dollar award.