opioids

Counselors in the field of substance abuse rehabilitation earn roughly $40,000 a year, surveys show, and the work can be emotionally draining. Employee turnover is high, and likely to get worse.

A new study shows fatal drug overdoses in North Carolina jumped over a 12-year period. Officials believe prescription opioid use has played a large role in that rise.

Some health plans in Massachusetts are putting tighter limits on painkiller prescriptions. Others are hiring their own social workers to help customers who struggle with opioid abuse quit for good.

Many employers who test for drugs don't screen employees for opioids. Yet opioid abuse is linked to problems with workplace productivity and safety.

Some Medicaid plans will now get federal funding for 15 days of inpatient treatment. But Pennsylvania fears the new rule will close a loophole the state has been using to pay for longer stints.

A state analysis reveals that the majority of overdose deaths in 2014 came from heroin or prescription opioids taken in combination with cocaine, anti-anxiety medications or alcohol.