opioid crisis

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

5:16pm Jul 18, 2019

Health & Safety Health & Safety

U.S. Overdose Deaths Dipped In 2018, But Some States Saw 'Devastating' Increases

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Provisional overdose data for 2018 show a note of hope in an overall bleak picture. But in some states, the numbers actually got worse. What explains the disparities?
4:19pm Jun 13, 2019

Health & Safety Health & Safety

HepConnect Initiative Launches In Response To Rise In Hepatitis C

by Bethany Chafin

A new statewide initiative will address the rise in hepatitis C cases in North Carolina.
Mike Blake / Reuters

11:26am Jun 03, 2019

Health & Safety Health & Safety

Johnson & Johnson, Under Fire, Has Track Record Of Weathering Trouble

by Scott Horsley

The health care giant faces multiple lawsuits, including one over opioids. A reputation for corporate responsibility, dating back to the Tylenol scandal, offers some protection but no guarantee.
Toby Talbot / AP

5:05pm May 26, 2019

National National

Teva Pharmaceuticals Agrees To $85 Million Settlement With Oklahoma In Opioid Case

by Shannon Van Sant

Oklahoma's attorney general had filed a lawsuit against the Israel-based company for its alleged role in fueling the opioid crisis.
Kathy Willens / AP

9:43pm Apr 23, 2019

National National Health & Safety

Drug Distributor And Former Execs Face First Criminal Charges In Opioid Crisis

by Richard Gonzales

A DEA official said the indictments are meant to send "shock waves" through the pharmaceutical industry to remind it of its responsibility to help control prescription medications.
Eamon Queeney / The Washington Post/Getty Images

9:56am Apr 10, 2019

National National

Opioid Maker Charged With Fraud In Marketing Drug As Less Prone To Abuse

by Brian Mann

British drug maker Indivior faces felony charges after allegedly trying to falsely convince doctors that its opioid products were safer than cheaper generic alternatives.
12:03pm Apr 04, 2019

Health & Safety Health & Safety Politics & Government

North Carolina Launches Campaign To Combat Opioid Crisis

Government and health care officials have kicked off a statewide campaign aimed at combatting a growing opioid crisis.
Sam McNeil / AP

7:40pm Apr 01, 2019

World News World News National Politics & Government Health & Safety

China To Close Loophole On Fentanyl After U.S. Calls For Opioid Action

by Sasha Ingber

Some manufacturers evaded scrutiny by slightly modifying the molecular structures of substances. Monday's announcement "puts a wider array of substances under regulation," a Chinese official says.
Jessica Hill / AP

3:24pm Mar 26, 2019

National National Health & Safety

Purdue Pharma Agrees To $270 Million Opioid Settlement With Oklahoma

by Martha Bebinger

The maker of OxyContin will pay to settle a historic opioid lawsuit brought by the attorney general of Oklahoma. Will other drugmakers named in the lawsuit follow?
Daniel Leal-Olivas / AFP/Getty Images

1:44pm Mar 20, 2019

World News World News Arts Health & Safety

Sackler Family's Donation To British Museum Is Quashed Over Opioid Fallout

by Bill Chappell

The U.K.'s National Portrait Gallery and the Sackler family — owners of the company that makes OxyContin — say they're concerned that allegations of profiteering could overshadow the gift.
Courtesy of Chuck Tryon

1:32pm Mar 08, 2019

Health & Safety Health & Safety

Commentary: Can Oklahoma Eliminate Overdose Deaths?

by John Henning Schumann

While there's been progress in lowering the death rate from prescription opioids in Oklahoma, the number of opioid prescriptions written in the state outpaces the national average.
Towfiqu Photography / Getty Images

7:29pm Dec 12, 2018

National National Science Health & Safety

Fentanyl Surpasses Heroin As Drug Most Often Involved In Deadly Overdoses

by Laurel Wamsley

When fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine, infiltrated the drug supply in the U.S. it had an immediate, dramatic effect on the overdose rate.