John Minchillo/AP Photos
Drug overdose deaths hit record levels last year with more than 81,000 fatalities, according to the CDC.
Fentanyl, involved in most of the deaths, is now sweeping the western US with a 98% rise in 10 states.
The synthetic opioid is 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more than heroin.
US drug overdose deaths hit record levels last year with more than 81,000 fatalities, according to the CDC. Fentanyl was involved in almost all of them and the dangerous drug is now sweeping the western states, agitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) told Insider: Fentanyl has been found mixed with many other drugs. People who buy drugs such as heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and MDMA are frequently not aware that these may be laced with fentanyl.
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02/16/21
WorkersCompensation.com
Sacramento, CA (WorkersCompensation.com) - Attorney General Becerra, along with a coalition of attorneys general from 47 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories, announced a $573 million settlement with one of the world s largest consulting firms, McKinsey & Company (McKinsey). The settlement resolves California s investigation into the company s role in advising opioid companies, helping those companies promote their drugs, and profiting from the opioid epidemic. This is the first multistate opioid settlement to result in substantial payment to the states to address the epidemic. California will receive $59,613,603.99 from the settlement, which will be used to abate the damage caused by opioids to families and communities in California.
FACE Consortium
“Not everything that is faced can be changed; but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” This quote by James Baldwin was part of the inspiration for a new project in the Copper Country. It’s called FACE (Facing Addiction through Community Engagement), and will focus on supporting loved ones of those dealing with addiction. Recovery from addiction (also known as Substance Use Disorder or SUD) can often overlook the “affected others” such as spouses, parents, and children of the person with SUD. The FACE project aims to change this.
Project Director Gail Ploe said, “For every person with a substance use disorder, there are so many affected others – children, partners, parents, family and friends – who suffer right along with them. Unfortunately, they don’t always get the support and services they need. This project will not only help families, it will help people with SUD because family involvement is such an important part of recovery.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has dominated the news since last spring, pushing aside America s other epidemic the opioid epidemic which has only gotten worse in the intervening months.
People who work on the front lines of the opioid epidemic on Cape Cod say isolation caused by COVID-19 lockdowns and social distancing protocols that limit access to 12-step and other meetings are part of what s driving the increase.
Susan Kinnane of Eastham lost their son Danny Vigliano to an overdose in August. The 35-year-old, whose struggle she said was made worse by the isolation, died alone on the floor of a Brockton MBTA station. Toxicology reports showed ethanol and fentanyl in his system.