Latest Drugs Headlines
All the headlines from our Drugs Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Kentucky Pharmacist Gets 30 Years for Illegally Selling Pain Pills
Jul 6 2017 // A Kentucky pharmacist convicted of illegally distributing hundreds of thousands of prescription pain pills has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. The U.S. attorney’s office in Lexington said in a news...
84-Year-Old Florida Doc Accused of Illegally Distributing $10M in Pain Pills
Jun 29 2017 // Authorities say an 84-year-old Florida doctor is accused of illegally distributing $10 million worth of pain pill prescriptions. Dr. Williem Ouw was arrested June 15 and held in a Fort Lauderdale jail until his release...
North Carolina Passes Bill to Limit Opioid Prescriptions
Jun 29 2017 // Legislation designed to address North Carolina’s opioid abuse problem is headed to Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk. The House gave final approval Tuesday to a bill that would improve the rules on prescribing and...
How States Rate in Preventing Home, Auto, Work Accidents
Jun 28 2017 // No state goes far enough to protect its residents from leading causes of preventable deaths and injuries – commonly known as “accidents” – on the road, in homes and communities and at work, according to the...
Number of Compound Drug Prescriptions Falling in Texas Workers’ Comp System
Jun 26 2017 // A report released in May by the Texas Department of Insurance – Division of Workers’ Compensation shows that while the number of compounded drug prescriptions in the workers’ comp system grew between 2010 and...
Missouri Becomes 3rd State to Sue Opioid Manufacturers
Jun 23 2017 // Missouri on June 21 became the third U.S. state to accuse major drug manufacturers of fraudulently misrepresenting the risks of opioid painkillers now at the center of a national addiction epidemic. Missouri Attorney...
Weed Warning: Legalizing Marijuana Tied to Rise in Crashes in 3 States by HLDI
Jun 23 2017 // Legalizing recreational marijuana use in Colorado, Oregon and Washington has resulted in collision claim frequencies that are about three percent higher overall than would have been expected without legalization, a new...
North Carolina Senate Passes Legislation to Reduce Opioid Abuse
Jun 23 2017 // Legislation aimed at reducing opioid abuse and overdoses has passed the North Carolina Senate with unanimous bipartisan support. The measure approved Wednesday changes how drugs such as OxyContin and morphine are...
Mississippi Drug Overdose Deaths Reach Record High
Jun 21 2017 // Drug overdose deaths have reached a record high in Mississippi. The Clarion-Ledger reported that the at least 211 deaths in 2016 were the most in Mississippi’s history. Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics director John...
3 Tennessee Prosecutors Join Forces in Suit Against Opioid Drug Makers
Jun 19 2017 // A new lawsuit invokes the plight of a baby born dependent on opioid drugs, as three Tennessee prosecutors and the baby’s guardian accuse several drug manufacturers of unleashing an epidemic through deceptive...
Texas Seeks Input on Draft Compound Drug Rule Amendments
Jun 19 2017 // The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is now accepting comments on informal draft compound drug rule amendments. An informal draft of amendments to 28 Texas Administrative Code...
Growing Number of Municipal Suits Over Opioids Face Uphill Battle
Jun 19 2017 // A growing number of U.S. states, counties and cities are filing lawsuits accusing drug companies of deceptively marketing opioid painkillers to downplay their addictiveness. But some lawyers say the industry’s highly...
Louisiana Tightens Rules to Prevent ‘Doctor Shopping’ for Opioid Drugs
Jun 19 2017 // Louisiana lawmakers have ordered physicians to consult a statewide prescription monitoring program before prescribing opioid drugs. The Senate approved minor changes the House had made to Sen. Fred Mills’ bill and...
Cardinal Health Seeks Dismissal of Drug Suits in 6 West Virginia Counties
Jun 16 2017 // A pharmaceuticals distributor has asked a federal judge to dismiss lawsuits filed by six West Virginia counties over the opioid crisis, arguing that they were filed too late and the matter was already addressed in a state...
Bills Meant to Curb Opioid Abuse in Louisiana Signed by Governor
Jun 14 2017 // Obtaining prescriptions for highly addictive opioid drugs in Louisiana will soon be more difficult under bills signed into law on June 12 by Gov. John Bel Edwards, who is hoping to turn the state into a leader in battling...
States Study Tobacco Lawsuit Tactics for Fight Over Opioid Costs
Jun 14 2017 // State and local leaders fighting a worsening opioid abuse epidemic are studying tactics used in the tobacco lawsuits of the 1990s, as they try to claw back billions from the companies who make and sell the powerful...
Companies Seek Dismissal of Oklahoma Tribe’s Prescription-Drug Suit
Jun 12 2017 // Walmart and other major corporations are asking a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed against them by the Cherokee Nation, which argues that the companies have not done enough to stop prescription opioid abuse. The...
FDA Seeks to Halt Sales of Opioid Painkiller Opana ER for Public Health Reasons
Jun 9 2017 // As the United States battles a growing opioid abuse crisis, the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday asked Endo International Plc to withdraw from the market its long-lasting opioid painkiller, Opana ER, sending...
Louisiana Adds Hurdles to Prevent ‘Doctor Shopping’ for Opioid Drugs
Jun 5 2017 // Hoping to stop people from “doctor shopping” for highly addictive painkillers, Louisiana lawmakers have ordered physicians to consult a statewide prescription monitoring program before prescribing opioid...
U.S. Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Zoloft Lawsuits Against Pfizer
Jun 5 2017 // The Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia upheld a lower court’s dismissal last year of more than 300 product liability suits against drug maker Pfizer over its antidepressant Zoloft. The lawsuits...
