U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a report Thursday that calls for increasing access to addiction treatment. According to Reuters, the report calls drug and alcohol addiction a public health crisis. “The most important thing is, we have to change attitudes towards addiction and get people into treatment,” Murthy…
States Receive $53 Million in Grants to Fight Opioid Epidemic
Forty-four states will receive a total of $53 million in grants from the Obama Administration to fight the opioid epidemic, the Los Angeles Times reports. Administration officials are calling on legislators to approve $1.1 billion requested by President Obama to increase addiction treatment. The new state funds will include money…
Clinton Supports Tax on Prescription Opioids to Raise Funds for Addiction Treatment
Advocates Debate Plan to Ease Privacy Rules for People Treated for Addiction
A proposal that would allow patients being treated for addiction to consent to disclose their records to the healthcare system affiliated with their provider is spurring a debate about privacy, according to NPR. The proposal, from the Department of Health and Human Services, would update current privacy guidelines, which last…
Blood Pressure Medication Might Be Useful in Addiction Treatment, Rat Study Suggests
A medication used to treat high blood pressure might be useful in addiction treatment, a study of rats suggests. The drug, called isradipine, erased memories that led the rats to associate a certain room with cocaine or alcohol. The University of Texas researchers trained rats to associate either a white…