Latest Drugs Headlines
All the headlines from our Drugs Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Louisiana Woman Pleads Guilty in Texas in Opioid Pill Mill Case
Mar 9 2017 // Carolina Giselle Berrio, a/k/a “Carolina Slocum Berrio,” “Karrie,” 37, of Lafayette, Louisiana is the latest defendant to plead guilty to being involved in a large opioid “pill mill”...
Current, Ex-Kentucky Governors Battle Over Health Law Legacy
Mar 8 2017 // As Republicans in Congress prepare to repeal and replace former President Barack Obama’s health care law, Kentucky’s current governor and his predecessor are wrestling over the law’s legacy – and...
Stressed? Unfocused? Pop a Marijuana Mint and Get Back to Work
Mar 8 2017 // When Jeffrey Zucker needs to get a lot done at work, he eats half a weed gummy. Far from putting him at risk of a Maureen Dowd-level stupor, the 5-milligram dose of THC he gets gives him just a slight buzz that makes him...
Here Is a Section-by-Section Summary of Republicans’ Health Care Act
Mar 7 2017 // The following summary of the American Health Care Act, meant as a repeal and replacement for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), has been prepared by the Republican staff of the House Committee on Ways and Means. A copy...
New DEA Program Targets West Virginia Opioid Traffickers
Mar 6 2017 // The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will spend $500,000 on a program that aims to curb prescription drug and heroin abuse across the state. DEA special Agent Karl Colder tells the Charleston Gazette-Mail the project,...
Q&A: MEMIC Safety Expert on Growth of Ergonomics, Workers’ Comp
Feb 28 2017 // Powered by InsuranceJournal.tv Karl Siegfried, Senior Vice President of Loss Control & Safety Services at Portland, Maine-headquartered MEMIC Group recently spoke with Insurance Journal about the safety management team...
Pennsylvania Doctor Admits to Selling $5M Worth of Prescriptions to Addicts
Feb 27 2017 // A doctor has admitted his role in peddling prescriptions from a now-defunct clinic in Philadelphia, Penn., that specialized in helping drug addicts. Seventy-eighty-year-old Dr. Alan Summers pleaded guilty in federal court...
South Carolina Lawmakers File 10 Bills Aimed at Curbing Opioid Abuse
Feb 24 2017 // House Republicans filed 10 proposals Wednesday aimed at curbing South Carolina’s rampant prescription painkiller problem and promised more legislation would follow. “We wanted to get the ball rolling. This is...
Surprising Facts About Social Security and Medicare
Feb 22 2017 // While the era of “alternative facts” dawned in Washington last week, experts from across the ideological spectrum gathered in the capital for a review of real facts about our two most important retirement...
Overdose Calls Rise in Louisville, Kentucky, 151 Received in 4-Day Span
Feb 21 2017 // Emergency crews in Louisville, Ky., have seen a rise in the number of calls related to drug overdoses. The Courier-Journal reports Metro EMS says it fielded 151 overdose calls in four days, starting at midnight on Feb....
Report: Opioid Prescriptions Drop 11.7% in Wisconsin
Feb 20 2017 // Opioid prescriptions in Wisconsin fell nearly 12 percent in the final months of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015. A new report from the Controlled Substances Board shows the number of prescriptions dropped 11.7...
Declarations
Feb 20 2017 // Harassment Drones “The worst thing that can happen is you get mamas separated from their babies, and that’s one of my biggest concerns.” — Republican Rep. Scott Chew wants to send people to jail for...
New West Virginia Town Files Suit Against Drug Wholesalers Over Opioid Abuse
Feb 17 2017 // A southern West Virginia town has joined other communities in seeking to recoup the costs of dealing with opioid abuse. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the McDowell County town of Welch filed a lawsuit Monday against...
Report: Opioid Prescriptions Drop 11.7% in Wisconsin
Feb 9 2017 // A new report says opioid prescriptions dropped nearly 12 percent in Wisconsin in the last three months of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015. The report from the state Controlled Substances Board found the number of...
Doctor Charged in Rhode Island with Pushing Painkiller, Receiving Kickbacks
Feb 6 2017 // A doctor has been indicted on charges accusing him of getting kickbacks on prescriptions of a highly addictive painkiller written for patients who didn’t need the drug. Jerrold Rosenberg, a pain specialist and...
Commercial Health Plans’ Spending on Drugs Slowed in 2016: Express Scripts
Feb 6 2017 // Express Scripts Holding Co., the largest pharmacy benefit manager in the United States, said prescription drug spending for its members slowed to less than 4 percent in 2016, at a time when scrutiny of drug price hikes has...
Wells Fargo Market Outlook Offers Favorable News for Cyber Security
Feb 6 2017 // San Francisco, Calif.-based Wells Fargo Insurance released its 2017 Insurance Market Outlook and Employee Benefits Outlook report in late January, which shows this year’s property/casualty insurance market will again...
Opioid Doses in Ohio Declined Again in 2016
Feb 6 2017 // The number of opioid doses dispensed to Ohio patients decreased again last year, making 2016 the fourth year in a row that the number has dropped. A recent report from the State Board of Pharmacy’s Ohio Automated Rx...
West Virginia Town Sues Drug Distributors Over Costs of Opioid Abuse
Feb 2 2017 // A West Virginia town seeking to recoup the costs of dealing with opioid abuse is suing out-of-state drug distributors, and another community plans to file a similar suit. Media outlets report the Mingo County community of...
Louisiana Insurance Department Clarifies Prescription Drug Coupon Cards
Feb 1 2017 // The use of prescription drug coupon cards has been on the rise in response high prescription drug prices. The Louisiana Department of Insurance is offering guidance on these cards and also urging patients to always ask...
