drug addiction - NewBostonPost

opioids

Bay State steps up fight against drug abuse epidemic

BOSTON – Massachusetts is rising up against drug addiction after deaths due to heroin and painkiller dependency climbed 8 percent over the past year. Gov. Charlie Baker has made the issue a priority, as have many lawmakers from across the state. As a result, new laws will come into effect that

Massachusetts

Opioid overdose epidemic comes into focus for NE governors

BOSTON – Sharing a table at Harvard Medical School in Boston, New England's six governors pledged Tuesday to crack down on drug trafficking and share data from state prescription-monitoring programs. Levels of optimism varied among the four Democrats and two Republicans on the panel, as did the finger of

opioids

First implant to control opiate addiction wins FDA approval

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health officials on Thursday approved an innovative new option for Americans struggling with addiction to heroin and painkillers: a drug-oozing implant that curbs craving and withdrawal symptoms for six months at a time. The first-of-a-kind device, Probuphine, arrives as communities across the U.S. grapple with a

Worcester

Cuban refugee climbed from modest start to help addicts get clean

WORCESTER – Dr. Matilde Castiel could probably give state policymakers plenty of advice about dealing with drug abuse and the deadly opioid crisis gripping Massachusetts. The Cuban immigrant has been helping Latinos in Worcester overcome addiction for years in a treatment center and an innovative transitional assistance program that provides those

Massachusetts

Hospitals report a surge in opioid abuse cases

BOSTON – Opioid-related hospital visits are "skyrocketing" in Massachusetts, with heroin-related cases tripling from 2007 to 2014, according to Health Policy Commission figures discussed Wednesday. Opioid-related hospital visits have increased from around 30,000 in 2007 to more than 55,000 in 2014, with non-heroin opioids accounting for the

Elizabeth Warren

Warren eyes legal pot retail sales as a way to curb opiate abuse

WASHINGTON – Elizabeth Warren tentatively weighed in on the debate over legalizing marijuana, asking the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the effects of legal access to pot on the rate of deaths from heroin and opioid drug overdoses. The Bay State's senior U.S. Senator

Massachusetts

Patients who overdose on opioids get them again, study shows

BOSTON – Most patients who receive drugs to treat chronic pain and overdose on opioid medications still get the addictive synthetic opiates through their doctors, a new study shows. The 12-year study released Monday by the Boston Medical Center tracked almost 3,000 people who were treated in an emergency room

Massachusetts

Filmmaker explores drug addiction on Cape Cod

A young woman stares at the camera, speaking in a soft voice. "Every time I shot up, it felt like Christmas morning," she said. Another voice from the documentary sounds gruff yet forlorn: "I don't want to associate with anybody. I just want to be