Data collected by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) shows more than 100 billion doses of oxycodone and hydrocodone were shipped nationwide between 2006 and 2014, The Washington Post reports. In July, the newspaper reported that the nation’s drug manufacturers had distributed more than 76 billion opioid pills from 2006 through 2012. Two…
Regional trends in overdose deaths reveal multiple opioid epidemics
The United States is suffering from several different simultaneous opioid epidemics, rather than just a single crisis, according to an academic study of deaths caused by drug overdoses. David Peters, an associate professor of sociology at Iowa State University, co-authored the study, which appeared in the academic journal Rural Sociology. Peters…
Judge Reduces Johnson & Johnson Opioid Verdict by More Than $100 Million
A judge in Oklahoma has reduced a verdict against opioid maker Johnson & Johnson by more than $100 million, NPR reports. In August, state court Judge Thad Balkman ordered the company to pay $572 million over its role in Oklahoma’s opioid crisis. On Friday, Balkman cut that amount to $465 million. He…
For Rural Patients, Opioid Treatment Centers Often Too Far Away
Methadone is often used in the fight against opioid addiction, but long travel times in rural areas may be hampering efforts to get more people treated, a new study finds. If methadone for opioid addiction was available in primary care clinics, more people would have better access to treatment, researchers…
OxyContin Maker Files for Bankruptcy
Purdue Pharma, the company that makes the opioid painkiller OxyContin, has filed for bankruptcy, CNN reports. The filing is part of the company’s plan to settle litigation involving more than 2,000 cases brought by states, counties, municipalities and Native American governments. The plaintiffs in those cases say Purdue Pharma fueled the opioid…